Changes in fatigue and physical function with age for patients with gastrointestinal cancer in the perioperative period: a comparison between older and young patients.
Eisuke Kogure, Tsuyoshi Hara, Takaya Ishii and 1 others
PMID 29200645WHAT IT FOUND
Older and younger gastrointestinal cancer patients had similar fatigue around surgery, but younger patients walked farther after discharge.
Both groups walked less after surgery than before.
Key findings
01Fatigue was similar between older and younger gastrointestinal cancer patients, although older patients had higher and more variable scores.
02After discharge, younger patients walked farther on the six-minute walk test than older patients: 587.7 ± 103.7 m versus 514.2 ± 81.9 m.
03Both older and younger patients had shorter six-minute walk distances after surgery than before surgery.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
The study included only 52 patients, with 23 older and 29 younger patients, so small differences may be unstable. Patients with physical or cognitive dysfunction, psychiatric disorders, dependence in daily activities, inability to walk judged by the doctor, or postoperative complications were excluded, so results may not apply to more frail patients. The study did not measure detailed physical activity or physical condition before hospitalization, so pre-existing fitness may confound age and walking differences. The study was observational and did not test an exercise programme, so it cannot show that exercise guidance improves fatigue or walking. The reported correlations between age and measurements are inconsistent between the text and the table, so they should not be used for clinical decisions.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that older patients have more fatigue than younger patients or that exercise guidance has been shown to improve fatigue and walking after gastrointestinal cancer surgery. Fatigue was not significantly different between the age groups, and the study did not test an exercise programme.