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Table 1 Baseline characteristics of men and women in the MOBILIZE Boston cohort

From: Sex differences in circumstances and consequences of outdoor and indoor falls in older adults in the MOBILIZE Boston cohort study

Characteristics

Men

Women

p-value†

(n = 276)

(n = 467)

 

Demographic

   

  Age (years)

78.3 ± 5.2

78.1 ± 5.0

0.76

  Education completed (years)

14.8 ± 3.2

13.9 ± 3.0

<0.001

  White race/ethnicity

227 (82.3)

351 (75.3)

0.03

Lifestyle

   

  Body mass index (kg/m2)

27.4 ± 4.4

27.7 ± 5.6

0.67

  Physical activity (PASE)

   

   Moderate-vigorous occupational

21 (7.6)

56 (12.0)

0.06

   Recreational (hours/week)

1.3 ± 2.4

0.9 ± 1.7

0.07

   Light household chores in past week

229 (84.2)

431 (98.0)

<0.001

   Lawn/garden chores in past week

113 (41.2)

148 (32.0)

0.01

   Total PASE score

112.9 ± 79.6

104.2 ± 65.4

0.44

  Blocks walked per week

53.8 ± 82.5

36.3 ± 57.7

<0.001

  Outdoor walking habit

  

0.55

   Non-walker

74 (27.3)

145 (31.7)

 

   Exercise only

66 (24.4)

111 (24.3)

 

   Utilitarian only

33 (12.2)

56 (12.3)

 

   Both exercise and utilitarian

98 (36.2)

145 (31.7)

 

Physical disability

   

  Balance (Berg score)

50.5 ± 6.3

49.2 ± 6.9

<0.001

  Assisted chair-stand test using arms (seconds)

19 (6.9)

39 (8.4)

0.47

  Gait speed (m/sec)

0.99 ± 0.26

0.92 ± 0.25

0.002

  Activities of daily living:

  

0.71

   No difficulty

218 (79.0)

357 (76.5)

 

   Little/some difficulty

39 (14.1)

72 (15.4)

 

   Much difficulty/inability

19 (6.9)

38 (8.1)

 

  Short physical performance battery (score)

9.6 ± 2.4

9.1 ± 2.6

0.01

  Reduced activity due to illness in past year

67 (24.3)

144 (30.8)

0.06

  Poor vision (worse than 40/100)

21 (7.6)

39 (8.4)

0.72

Illness-Related

   

  Moderate/severe bodily pain

85 (30.9)

206 (44.2)

<0.001

  Number of comorbid conditions

2.9 ± 1.6

2.9 ± 1.4

0.74

  Fair/poor self-rated health

44 (15.9)

67 (14.4)

0.56

  Peripheral neuropathy

44 (16.1)

47 (10.1)

0.02

  Foot pain on most days

54 (19.6)

125 (26.8)

0.03

  Knee osteoarthritis

67 (24.3)

122 (26.2)

0.57

  Depression

22 (8.0)

31 (6.6)

0.50

  Medication use

   

  Number of medications

6.2 ± 3.2

6.2 ± 3.1

0.91

  Use of psychotropic medication‡

42 (15.3)

108 (23.4)

0.009

Cognition

   

  MMSE score

27.4 ± 2.5

26.8 ± 2.7

0.004

  Trail making Test B adjusted for motor component (secs)

86.2 ± 61.9

91.5 ± 64.9

0.35

Fall-Related

   

  Number of falls in year before baseline

0.9 ± 3.3

0.7 ± 1.6

0.17

  Falls efficacy score

96.3 ± 8.6

95.2 ± 9.7

0.03

  1. All variables had a sample size of 95-100% of full N shown. Results are means ± SD or frequency (%) and corresponding p-values for sex differences.
  2. †Wilcoxon rank-sum test was used for age, education, body mass index, PASE, balance, gait speed, short physical performance battery, number of comorbid conditions, number of medications, MMSE, Trail B, falls before baseline, falls efficacy, and blocks walked per week; chi-square was used for all other variables.
  3. ‡Includes antidepressants, benzodiazepines, antipsychotics, and other sedatives.
  4. Abbreviations: SD Standard deviation, PASE Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly, MMSE Mini-Mental State Examination.
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BMC Geriatrics

ISSN: 1471-2318

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