Sport and Recreational Physical Activities Attenuate the Predictive Association of Multimorbidity With Increased Geriatric Depressive Symptoms: A 14-Year Follow-Up Study of Community-Dwelling Older Adults

Association between recreational physical activity and depressive symptoms in adults with diagnosed sleep disorders: an analysis of NHANES 2007-2018 data

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to examine the relationship between recreational physical activity and depressive symptoms in adults diagnosed with sleep disorders, and to explore the potential of recreational physical activity as a practical intervention to alleviate depressive symptoms.

METHODS

Data were drawn from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) between 2007 and 2018, including a cohort of 3,164 adults with diagnosed sleep disorders. Depressive symptoms were measured using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), while recreational physical activity was assessed via metabolic equivalents (METs). The association between physical activity and depressive symptoms was evaluated using multiple linear regression and breakpoint regression models, adjusting for covariates such as sex, age, ethnicity, smoking status, and alcohol consumption.

RESULTS

In the fully adjusted model, participants in the highest quartile of recreational physical activity (Q4) exhibited significantly lower depressive symptom scores (Q4: β = -1.01, 95% CI: -1.58 to -0.44, p = 0.0005), indicating that greater physical activity was linked to fewer depressive symptoms. Additional analyses revealed that this inverse relationship was most pronounced for activity levels below 840 MET, which corresponds to approximately 105 min of vigorous recreational physical activity per day or 210 min of moderate-intensity activity per day. The association weakened for activity levels exceeding 840 MET. Subgroup analyses further indicated that the benefits of recreational physical activity were more pronounced in men, individuals aged 40-60 years, and former smokers.

CONCLUSION

Higher levels of recreational physical activity were associated with significantly reduced depressive symptoms in adults with sleep disorders. The greatest reductions in depressive symptoms were observed at activity levels below 840 MET, which corresponds to approximately 105 min of vigorous recreational physical activity per day or 210 min of moderate-intensity activity per day. Men, individuals aged 40-60 years, and former smokers derived the most benefit from these activity levels.

Mapping the extent of the literature and psychometric properties for the Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly (PASE) in community-dwelling older adults: a scoping review

BACKGROUND

Identifying valid and accessible tools for monitoring and improving physical activity levels is essential for promoting functional ability and healthy aging. The Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly (PASE) is a commonly used and recommended self-report measure of physical activity in older adults. The objective of this scoping review was to map the nature and extent to which the PASE has been used in the literature on community-dwelling older adults, including the evidence for its psychometric properties.

METHODS

Seven electronic databases (MEDLINE (Ovid), Embase (Ovid), AMED (Ovid), Emcare (Ovid), CINAHL (EBSCO), Ageline (EBSCO)) were searched from inception to January 25, 2023. Studies were included if physical activity was part of the aim(s) and measured using the PASE, participants had a mean age of 60 years or older and lived in the community, and papers were peer-reviewed journal articles published in English. Pairs of independent reviewers screened abstracts, full-texts, and extracted data. Where possible, weighted mean PASE scores were calculated for different subgroups based on age, sex, and clinical population.

RESULTS

From 4,124 studies screened, 232 articles from 35 countries met the inclusion criteria. Most studies were cross-sectional (60.78%), completed in high-income countries (86.4%) and in North America (49.57%). A variety of clinical conditions were included (n = 21), with the most common populations being osteoarthritis (n = 13), Parkinson's disease (n = 11), and cognitive impairment (n = 7). Psychometric properties of ten versions of the PASE were found. All versions demonstrated acceptable test-retest reliability. Evidence for construct validity showed moderate correlations with self-reported physical activity, fair to moderate with accelerometry derived activity and fair relationships with physical function and self-reported health. Pooled means were reported in graphs and forest plots for males, females, age groups, and several clinical populations.

CONCLUSION

The PASE was widely used in a variety of clinical populations and geographical locations. The PASE has been culturally adapted to several populations and evaluated for its reliability and convergent validity; however, further research is required to examine responsiveness and predictive validity. Researchers can use the weighted mean PASE scores presented in this study to help interpret PASE scores in similar populations. OSF REGISTRATION: osf.io/7bvhx.

Geriatric depression: prevalence and its associated factors in rural Odisha

The world's population is aging rapidly, and the epidemiological transition has led to increased mental disorders worldwide. Geriatric depression is masked by multiple comorbidities or the natural process of aging. Our study aims to estimate the prevalence of geriatric depression and find the risk factors associated with geriatric depression in rural Odisha. The study was a multistage cross-sectional study conducted in the Tangi block, district Khordha, Odisha, from August 2020 to September 2022, among 520 participants selected by probability proportional to size sampling. From the selected participants, eligible 479 older adults were interviewed using a semi-structured interview schedule, Hindi Mini Mental Scale, Geriatric Depression Scale-15, and Hamilton Depression Rating Scale. The step forward multivariable logistic regression was used to assess the associated factors of depression among older adults. Among our participants, 44.4% (213) of older adults were depressed. Substance abuse in family members [AOR: 16.7 (9.1-30.9)], history of elder abuse [AOR: 3.7 (2.1-6.7)], physical dependency [AOR: 2.2 (1.3-3.6)], and financial dependency [AOR: 2.2 (1.3-3.6)] are significant independent risk factors associated with geriatric depression. Living with children [AOR: 0.33 (0.18-0.59)] and recreational activity [AOR: 0.54 (0.34-0.85)] are significant protective factors of geriatric depression. Our study found that geriatric depression is highly prevalent in rural Odisha. Poor quality of family life and physical and financial dependency was found to be the most significant risk factor for geriatric depression.

Depression symptoms and quality of life in empty-nest elderly among Chengdu: A cross-sectional study

OBJECTIVES

To estimate the prevalence of depression symptoms and quality of life (QoL) and examined the influence of factors in the empty nest elderly.

METHODS

This was a cross-sectional study, which was conducted from February 2022 to May 2022. We recruited a convenience sample of no empty-nest elderly and empty-nest elderly (≥60 years) living in Chengdu. QoL was assessed using WHOQOL-BREF, Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15) was used to assess depression symptoms. Multivariable logistic regression was used to analyze data between independent variables with depression symptoms.

RESULTS

Two thousand twenty-six participants were included in this study, 39.0% (660/1,082) experienced depression symptoms among empty-nest elderly. Age (aOR, 1.02; 95% CI, 1.00-1.04; P = 0.046), chronic disease≥2 (aOR, 3.29; 95% CI, 2.50-4.33; P < 0.001) were associated with increased risk of depression symptoms, and physical activity (aOR, 0.59; 95% CI, 0.40-0.87; P = 0.008), physical health (aOR, 0.93; 95% CI, 0.88-0.99; P = 0.026), psychological health (aOR, 0.93; 95% CI, 0.87-0.98; P = 0.013), and total score (aOR, 0.97; 95% CI, 0.96-0.99; P < 0.001) were associated with decreased risk of depression symptoms among empty-nest elderly.

CONCLUSIONS

Depression symptoms are common mental health problems among empty-nest elderly. We found that age, chronic disease ≥2 and physical activity were important factors that have an impact on depressive symptoms. Empty-nest elderly would have lowered QoL score.