Life-space mobility and sensory functions in older people (LIMO)

The aim of this study is to investigate the role of sensory functions leading to decline in life-space mobility in older people. Outdoor mobility by walking and/or by using different forms of transportation is crucial for older persons’ independent living in the community and an important element of their quality of life. Life-space mobility describes the size of the spatial area of a person where she/he moves as well as the frequency of travels in that area. Life-space mobility reflects the balance between individual resources and environmental challenges in person’s daily life. It is presumable that deprivation of environmental information due to impaired sensory functions may emerge as uncertainty and poorer functioning in mobility tasks. Better understanding of the different stages of mobility decline process and adaptive strategies to compensate mobility decline is needed in order to promote the older person´s ability to live independently in the community. This study utilizes FITSA and LISPE datasets. Furthermore, Longitudinal Study of Aging of Danish Twins (LSADT) –data (University of Southern Denmark) is used.

Funding

Academy of Finland, Finnish Cultural Foundation

Research group

Postdoctoral researcher

Anne Viljanen, anne.viljanen[at]jyu.fi, Department of Health Sciences, University of Jyväskylä

Collaborators

University of Helsinki (Prof. Jaakko Kaprio)

University of Southern Denmark (Prof. Kaare Christensen)

Publications

Viljanen A, Kulmala J, Rantakokko M, Koskenvuo M, Kaprio J, Rantanen T. Fear of falling and coexisting sensory difficultiees as predictors of mobility decline in older women. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci 2012;67:1230-7.