Determinants for the Use of Ambulation Aids in a Geriatric Rehabilitation Care Unit: A Retrospective Study

Abstract

This study aimed at assessing the profile of ambulation aid users among patients admitted for geriatric rehabilitation care. Retrospective chart review. Geriatric Rehabilitation Department of the Hôpital Albert Chenevier, Créteil, France. The sample comprised 206 records of patients aged 65 or older with no previous use of assistive device before admission and length of stay longer than 7 days. Ambulation levels were classified as independent ambulators (IA, reference category), ambulation aid users (AA), or nonambulatory patients (NA). we explored age, gender, purpose of initial admission, comorbidities, and past medical history as factors potentially associated with ambulation levels, using multinomial logistic regression. The study population (mean age 84 years [6.1 standard deviation], 68.5 % women) comprised 110 IA (53.4% of the overall population), 72 AA (34.9%), and 24 NA (11.6%). Factors independently associated with AA use were the following: older age (odds ratio= 1.17; [95% confidence interval 1.09-1.25]), previous history of lower limb surgery (2.15; [1.0-4.73]), and admission for hip surgery (8.14; [2.60-25.53]). Factors independently associated with NA were the following: older age (1.12 [1.02-1.23]) and low Mini-Mental State Exam score (0.77 [0.70-0.85]). A borderline association was observed for visual impairment (3.36 [0.93-12.95]). Cardiac disease, respiratory disease, falls, and dementia were not associated with ambulation aid use. History of lower-limb surgery, particularly recent hip surgery, and old age are the primary predictive factors of ambulation aid use in a geriatric rehabilitation hospital.