Search results for "Community"
showing 10 items of 2132 documents
Developing an Assessment Method of Active Aging: University of Jyvaskyla Active Aging Scale
2018
Objective: To develop an assessment method of active aging for research on older people. Method: A multiphase process that included drafting by an expert panel, a pilot study for item analysis and scale validity, a feedback study with focus groups and questionnaire respondents, and a test–retest study. Altogether 235 people aged 60 to 94 years provided responses and/or feedback. Results: We developed a 17-item University of Jyvaskyla Active Aging Scale with four aspects in each item (goals, ability, opportunity, and activity; range 0-272). The psychometric and item properties are good and the scale assesses a unidimensional latent construct of active aging. Discussion: Our scale assesses ol…
Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin d and the onset of late-life depressive mood in older men and women: the Pro.V.A. study.
2014
Depression is a debilitating chronic condition, and its diagnosis and treatment in elderly people are often challenging. Because depressive mood seems to follow a seasonal pattern, peaking in summer and winter (1), it has recently been suggested that, through its action on the hypothalamus (which is involved in mood regulation), vitamin D might account for the link between seasonal changes in photoperiod and seasonal mood swings (2). Acting as a neurosteroid hormone, vitamin D may regulate human and animal neurotransmission, neuroprotection, and neuroimmunomodulation (3), and nuclear vitamin D receptors have been located in the human cortex and hippocampus (4). Although an association betwe…
Older persons with signs of frailty in a home-based physical exercise intervention : baseline characteristics of an RCT
2019
Background Increasing the level of physical activity among persons with signs of frailty improves physical functioning. There is a lack of long-term supervised physical exercise intervention studies including a validated definition of frailty. Aims To present baseline characteristics of persons with signs of frailty participating in a randomized long-term home-based physical exercise trial (HIPFRA), and to study associations between the severity of frailty, functional independence and health-related quality-of-life (HRQoL). Methods Three hundred persons, ≥ 65 years old and with signs of frailty (assessed by Fried´s phenotype criteria) were recruited from South Karelia, Finland and randomize…
Gut microbiota disturbance during antibiotic therapy: a multi-omic approach
2014
It is known that the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) microbiota responds to different antibiotics in different ways and that while some antibiotics do not induce disturbances of the community, others drastically influence the richness, diversity, and prevalence of bacterial taxa. However, the metabolic consequences thereof, independent of the degree of the community shifts, are not clearly understood. In a recent article, we used an integrative OMICS approach to provide new insights into the metabolic shifts caused by antibiotic disturbance. The study presented here further suggests that specific bacterial lineage blooms occurring at defined stages of antibiotic intervention are mostly associa…
Adherence to antibiotic treatment guidelines and outcomes in the hospitalized elderly with different types of pneumonia.
2015
none 22 no Background: Few studies evaluated the clinical outcomes of Community Acquired Pneumonia (CAP), Hospital-Acquired Pneumonia (HAP) and Health Care-Associated Pneumonia (HCAP) in relation to the adherence of antibiotic treatment to the guidelines of the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) and the American Thoracic Society (ATS) in hospitalized elderly people (65 years or older). Methods: Data were obtained from REPOSI, a prospective registry held in 87 Italian internal medicine and geriatric wards. Patients with a diagnosis of pneumonia (ICD-9 480-487) or prescribed with an antibiotic for pneumonia as indication were selected. The empirical antibiotic regimen was defined t…
Microbial Succession in the Gut: Directional Trends of Taxonomic and Functional Change in a Birth Cohort of Spanish Infants
2014
In spite of its major impact on life-long health, the process of microbial succession in the gut of infants remains poorly understood. Here, we analyze the patterns of taxonomic and functional change in the gut microbiota during the first year of life for a birth cohort of 13 infants. We detect that individual instances of gut colonization vary in the temporal dynamics of microbiota richness, diversity, and composition at both functional and taxonomic levels. Nevertheless, trends discernible in a majority of infants indicate that gut colonization occurs in two distinct phases of succession, separated by the introduction of solid foods to the diet. This change in resource availability causes…
Solving Man-Induced Large-Scale Conservation Problems: The Spanish Imperial Eagle and Power Lines
2011
[Background] Man-induced mortality of birds caused by electrocution with poorly-designed pylons and power lines has been reported to be an important mortality factor that could become a major cause of population decline of one of the world rarest raptors, the Spanish imperial eagle (Aquila adalberti). Consequently it has resulted in an increasing awareness of this problem amongst land managers and the public at large, as well as increased research into the distribution of electrocution events and likely mitigation measures.
Horizontal transmission of streptococcus mutans in schoolchildren
2011
Objetive: The aim of this study was to analyze possible horizontal transmission patterns of S. mutans among 6-7-yr-old schoolchildren from the same class, identifying genotypes and their diversity and relationship with caries disease status. Study Design: Caries indexes and saliva mutans streptococci and lactobacilli counts were recorded in 42 schoolchildren. Mutans streptococci colonies were identified by means of biochemical tests and all S. mutans strains were genotyped by arbitrarily primed polymerase chain reaction. A child was considered free of S. mutans when it could not be isolated in 3 samples at 1-week intervals. Results: S. mutans was isolated in 30 schoolchildren: 20 having one…
Personal goals and changes in life-space mobility among older people
2015
Abstract Objective Life-space mobility – the spatial extent of mobility in daily life – is associated with quality of life and physical functioning but may also be influenced by future orientation expressed in personal goals. The aim of this study was to explore how different personal goals predict changes in older people's life-space mobility. Methods This prospective cohort study with a 2-year follow-up included 824 community-dwelling people aged 75 to 90 years from the municipalities of Jyvaskyla and Muurame in Central Finland. As part of the Life-Space Mobility in Old Age study (LISPE), which was conducted between 2012 and 2014, the participants responded to the Life-Space Assessment an…
Differences in Weight Status and Energy-Balance Related Behaviors among Schoolchildren across Europe: The ENERGY-Project
2012
Published version of an article published in the journal: PLoS ONE. Also available from the publisher at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0034742 Background: Current data on the prevalence of overweight and energy-balance behaviors among European children is necessary to inform overweight prevention interventions. Methodology/Principal Findings: A school-based survey among 10–12 year old children was conducted in seven European countries using a standardized protocol. Weight, height, and waist circumference were measured; Engagement in physical activity, sedentary and dietary behaviors, and sleep duration were self-reported. Descriptive analyses were conducted, looking at differences…