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Updated: May 14, 2026

Assessment of Dependence in Activities of Daily Living Among Older Patients in an Acute Care Unit
Published on: September 30, 2020
A longitudinal study of physical function in patients with early-onset dementia
Gro Gujord Tangen1, Elisabet Londos, Johan Olsson
1Department of Health Sciences, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.
Background:
The aim of this study was to explore changes in mobility in terms of ambulation and transfer over 1 year in patients with early-onset Alzheimer's disease (EOAD), and to compare mobility in EOAD with patients with other types of early-onset dementia (EOOD).
Method:
Forty-two patients with EOAD and 30 patients with EOOD were included. All patients were home-dwelling and had mild or moderate degree of dementia. Mobility was assessed using the Timed Up and Go Test (TUG), a modified version of the Clinical Outcome Variables Scale, timed stair walking, and timed rise from the floor.
Results:
The EOAD group performed significantly better than the EOOD group on all mobility tests. After 1 year, 25 persons with EOAD were tested again. The performance on TUG (p = 0.028) and stair walking (p = 0.02) had deteriorated at the 1-year follow-up in the EOAD group.
Conclusion:
Patients with EOAD performed better on mobility tasks than patients with EOOD, but their performance deteriorated at 1-year follow-up.
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