0000000000447190
AUTHOR
Mikaela B Von Bonsdorff
The utilization of primary healthcare services among frail older adults – findings from the Helsinki Birth Cohort Study
Abstract Background The impact of frailty on primary healthcare service use, especially general practice office visits and remote contacts, is currently unknown. Further, little is known about the association of frailty with physiotherapy contacts. Methods We examined the utilization of primary healthcare services among 1064 participants from the Helsinki Birth Cohort Study between the years 2013 and 2017. Frailty was assessed based on Fried’s frailty criteria at mean age of 71.0 (2.7 SD) years in clinical examinations between the years 2011 and 2013. General practice office visits and remote contacts, the total number of general practice contacts, physiotherapy contacts, and the total numb…
Body Composition in Late Midlife as a Predictor of Accelerated Age-associated Deficit-accumulation From Late Midlife into Old Age: A Longitudinal Birth Cohort Study
Abstract Background Body mass index (BMI) may not be an optimal predictor of frailty as its constituents, lean and fat mass, may have opposite associations with frailty. Methods A linear mixed model analysis was performed in the Helsinki Birth Cohort Study (n = 2 000) spanning from 57 to 84 years. A 39-item frailty index (FI) was calculated on three occasions over 17 years. Body composition in late midlife included BMI, percent body fat (%BF), waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), lean mass index (LMI), and fat mass index (FMI). Results Mean FI levels increased by 0.28%/year among men and by 0.34%/year among women. Among women, per each kg/m2 higher BMI and each unit higher %BF the increases in FI leve…
Work incapacity among family caregivers : a record linkage study
BackgroundFamily caregiving-related physical and mental health problems may lead to work incapacity in employed caregivers. The aim of this study was to quantify sickness absences and disability pensions (SADP) among high-intensity family caregivers available to the labour market compared with a control population.MethodsThe study sample included all individuals in Finland, who had received caregiver’s allowance and were available to the labour market in 2012 (n=16 982) and their controls (n=35 371). Information on the number of sickness absence (spells >10 days) and disability pension (SADP) days and related diagnoses according to ICD-10 were obtained from national registers for the yea…
Use of prescription benzodiazepines and related drugs in family caregivers: a nation-wide register-based study
Abstract Background objective indicators of sleep and mental health problems in family caregivers have rarely been reported. Objective to study the use of prescription benzodiazepines and related drugs (BZDRD) in Finnish family caregivers and matched controls. Design prospective follow-up in 2012–17. Setting nationwide register-linkage study. Subjects all individuals who received family caregiver’s allowance in Finland in 2012 (N = 42,256; mean age 67 years; 71% women) and controls matched for age, sex and municipality of residence (N = 83,618). Methods information on purchases of prescription BZDRD, including the number of defined daily doses (DDDs), between 2012 and 2017 was obtained from…
BODY SIZE AT BIRTH, CHILDHOOD GROWTH, HIP FRACTURES IN OLDER AGE
Childhood growth has been linked with bone properties in adulthood, whereas less is known about the contribution of early growth to bone fracture risk. We investigated the association of body size at birth and childhood growth with hip fractures and pharmacotherapy for osteoporosis in older age. Men and women, born full term, from the Helsinki Birth Cohort Study (n = 8345) were followed until the age of 68 to 80 years. Height and weight from birth to 11 years were obtained from health care records and diagnoses of hip fractures and osteoporosis drug purchases from national registers. Independent associations of each age period were analyzed using Cox models adjusted for age, childhood and a…