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Published on: September 30, 2020
Regression-based estimates of observed functional status in centenarians.
Meghan B Mitchell1, L Stephen Miller, John L Woodard
1Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center, Edith Nourse Memorial Veterans Hospital, Bedford, MA 01730, USA. meghan.mitchell2@va.gov
The Gerontologist
|October 27, 2010
Summary
Proxy reports more accurately reflect functional status in centenarians compared to self-reports. Cognitive status influences the accuracy of self-reported daily functioning, impacting assessments for older adults.
Area of Science:
- Gerontology
- Functional Assessment
- Cognitive Impairment
Background:
- Limited consensus exists on optimal functional assessment methods for centenarians.
- Few studies have investigated daily functioning in this extreme aging population.
Purpose of the Study:
- Compare performance-based, self-report, and proxy report associations for functional status in centenarians.
- Investigate the role of cognitive status in the discrepancy between self-report and observed functioning.
- Provide clinicians with tools to estimate centenarian functional performance.
Main Methods:
- Cross-sectional population-based study of 244 centenarians.
- Utilized Direct Assessment of Functional Status, self-report, proxy report, and Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE).
Main Results:
- Proxy reports showed stronger associations with observed basic and instrumental activities of daily living (BADLs/IADLs) than self-reports.
- A significant interaction between MMSE performance and report type indicated greater discrepancies in functional status reporting among those with lower cognitive function.
Conclusions:
- Functional status assessment methods show varying degrees of association in centenarians.
- Proxy reports are generally more reliable than self-reports for assessing functional status.
- Cognitive status explains some of the variance between observed and self-reported functioning, aiding clinical estimation.
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