Interrelationship among the health-related and subjective quality of life, daily life activities, instrumental activities of daily living of community-dwelling elderly females in orthopedic outpatients.
Seiichi Takemasa, Ryoma Nakagoshi, Masayuki Uesugi and 4 others
PMID 28603364WHAT IT FOUND
In older women attending orthopedic clinics, less pain, better general health, more energy, better social life, and better mental health went with greater happiness.
Happiness did not track daily activity or practical independence. Physical function tracked daily and practical activities, and energy tracked practical activities.
Key findings
01SF-36 physical function averaged 37.4 ± 14.9 and body pain averaged 42.6 ± 9.5, below the national standard score of 50.
02Happiness scores were linked with body pain, general health, vitality, social function, and mental health scores, but not with daily life activity or FAI scores.
03Physical function was linked with daily life activity (r=0.50), and vitality was linked with FAI scores (r=0.53).
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTs
Read the rest of this summary
You get three full summaries a month, free, and we do not ask for a card. Search, the TL;DRs and your library stay unlimited either way.
What it does not show
The study included only 27 community-dwelling older women who attended orthopedic outpatient clinics, so it cannot be applied to other groups. The paper does not report how the women were selected, how many were approached, or how many declined, so the sample may not represent all older women in orthopedic outpatient care. Quality of life and activity were measured at the same time, so the study cannot show which factor led to another. No treatment was tested, so the results cannot tell a therapist whether an intervention will improve quality of life. The authors suggest pain control and activity support in the Discussion, but those actions were not tested in this study.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that improving daily activity or practical independence will raise happiness. The study did not find a link between happiness and either activity measure, and it did not test any treatment.