Oriented Mobility Assessment Research Articles

Relation between vitamin D and geriatric syndrome

Vitamin D level is a common health problem for elderly persons and it is associated with a decrease in physical performance, furthermore, it has been demonstrated that those with low serum vitamin D level has more risk of cognitive impairment, depression and anxiety. The aim of the study was to estimate relation of vitamin D and geriatric syndrome. A prospective study was done on 50 subjects who were normal elderly persons above 65 years. All the participants were subjected to full history taking, complete physical examination, laboratory assessment including serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (OH)D by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and geriatric syndrome assessment using 5 methods namely fall risk assessment using timed up &go test, mini-mental state examination (MMSE), geriatric depressive scale, mini nutritional assessment and Tinetti performance - oriented mobility assessment (POMA). The number of patients who were vitamin D deficient (<12ng/ml), insufficient (12-20ng/ml) and sufficient (>20ng/ml) were 11, 24 and 15 respectively. There was significant p association between low vitamin D level and female gender (p=0.024), advanced age (p=0.026), no-sun exposure jobs (p=0.001) and nursing home residency. Mini mental state examination (p=0.006) and geriatric depressive scale (p=0.002) had a significant positive correlation with low vitamin D level while mini nutritional assessment (p=1.000), timed up and go test (p=0.225) and POMA score (p=0.133) had no significant correlation with low vitamin D level. There is correlation finding between vitamin D deficiency and advanced age, cognitive dysfunction, and depression.

Relationship of Balance and Mobility Status to Quality of Life in Patients with Primary Brain Tumors: A Pilot Study

Objective: Most research regarding the effectiveness of brain tumor treatments measure survival time, recurrence rate, and extent of surgical resection. Objective measurements of functional abilities and self-perceived quality of life (QoL) are important aspects of treatment response, yet these are not commonly assessed. This study was designed to determine the relationship between balance and mobility status and self-perceived QoL for patients before and after surgical excision of primary brain tumors. Methods: Nine adults who underwent surgical excision of presumed primary brain tumor were assessed prior to, immediately following, and 3 months post-surgery utilizing the Timed Up-and-Go (TUG), Tinetti Performance- Oriented Mobility Assessment (Tinetti) and Medical Outcomes Study 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36). ANOVA with repeated measures over time was performed on the data across the three time points. Outcome measures were correlated using Spearman’s correlations. Statistical significance for all tests was accepted at p < 0.05. Results: Balance, mobility and QoL measures changed significantly from pre-surgery to immediately postsurgery and from immediately post-surgery to 3 months later. However, neither QoL nor balance or mobility demonstrated significant change from pre-surgery to 3 months post-surgery. These results reflect clinically-noted changes in physical abilities the 3 time points. All measures significantly correlated at the two post-surgery measurements, indicating a close link between balance and mobility and QoL. Conclusion: The TUG and Tinetti can be used in brain tumor patients to quantify clinical changes in balance and mobility. These changes correlate with QoL over time.