The aging population calls for instruments to assess functional and cognitive impairment in the elderly, aiming to prevent conditions that affect functional abilities.ObjectiveTo verify the accuracy and reliability of the Pfeffer (FAQ) scale for the Brazilian elderly population and to evaluate the reliability and reproducibility of the translated version of the Pfeffer Questionnaire.MethodsThe Brazilian version of the FAQ was applied to 110 elderly divided into two groups. Both groups were assessed by two blinded investigators at baseline and again after 15 days. In order to verify the accuracy and reliability of the instrument, sensitivity and specificity measurements for the presence or absence of functional and cognitive decline were calculated for various cut-off points and the ROC curve. Intra and inter-examiner reliability were assessed using the Interclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC) and Bland-Altman plots.ResultsFor the occurrence of cognitive decline, the ROC curve yielded an area under the curve of 0.909 (95%CI of 0.845 to 0.972), sensitivity of 75.68% (95%CI of 93.52% to 100%) and specificity of 97.26%. For the occurrence of functional decline, the ROC curve yielded an area under the curve of 0.851 (95%CI of 64.52% to 87.33%) and specificity of 80.36% (95%CI of 69.95% to 90.76%). The ICC was excellent, with all values exceeding 0.75. On the Bland-Altman plot, intra-examiner agreement was good, with p>0.05consistently close to 0. A systematic difference was found for inter-examiner agreement.ConclusionThe Pfeffer Questionnaire is applicable in the Brazilian elderly population and showed reliability and reproducibility compared to the original test.

This review aimed to synthesize and evaluate the production of knowledge about factors significantly associated with frailty in hospitalized elderly. Therefore, the Medical Literature and Retrieval System Online (Medline), Literatura Latino-Americana em Ciências da Saúde (Lilacs) and Índice Bibliográfico Español em Ciencias de la Salud (Ibecs) databases were consulted from 2012 to 2016, whose analysis of twenty articles identified the following factors associated with frailty: increased hospital and post-discharge mortality, prolonged hospitalization, rehospitalization, transfers, advanced age, women and widows, as well as psychosocial, physical and / or functional factors. It is expected that the results of the review will facilitate improvement of the practices and the decision-making of the multiprofessional teams that provide elderly care in the hospital. KEYWORDS

Introduction: During aging there is a close relationship between visual deficits, imbalance and falls, and eye surgery can be an efficient treatment option for elderly persons. Objective: Evaluate the influence of visual conditions on patients suffering from senile cataract with increasing imbalance. Method: A descriptive and analytical study using a quantitative longitudinal cohort technique was conducted. The study included 30 individuals who were evaluated before and 30 and 60 days after surgery. The Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE), Berg Balance Scale (BBS), Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB), International Falls Efficacy Scale adapted for Brazil (FES-I) and a medical history questionnaire were used to collect data. Statistical analysis involved the Chi-squared, Student's t and Mann-Whitney tests. Values of p<0.05 were considered significant. Results: The SPPB found that of 15 elderly women, 13 (87%) achieved moderate performance of the lower limbs while the performance of two (13%) remained poor, after 60 postoperative days. The FES-I revealed that three (20%) elderly persons were mildly worried about falls 60 days post-surgery. Of the 15 elderly male subjects evaluated by BBS, before and at 30 and 60 days after surgery, one (7%), managed to maintain some balance but needed assistance; while 14 (93%) maintained good balance. The SPPB found that the performance of five elderly persons (33%) was moderate and that of nine (67%) was good. Conclusion: Senile cataract surgery had positive preventative effects on lower limb performance, balance and fear of falling among the elderly studied, preventing the falls and fractures that are common during aging.

A hipotensão ortostática (HO) é um problema comum entre pacientes idosos estando associada a síncopes, quedas, fraturas, morbidades e mortalidade. Estudos recentes relatam a HO como fator de risco para doenças cardiovasculares futuras. Foi realizada uma revisão sistemática da literatura nas bases de dados Pubmed, Scielo, Lilacs e Bireme, além de livros, nos idiomas português, inglês e espanhol, referentes aos anos de 2006 até 2013 a fim de averiguar estudos que analisaram a relação entre a HO em idosos e o risco de doenças cardiovasculares. Concluiu-se que a HO está relacionada a maiores riscos de doenças cardiovasculares, predominantemente em indivíduos de meia-idade, porém há a necessidade de maiores estudos acerca do tema voltados para a população idosa. Palavras-chave:Idosos; Envelhecimento; Hipotensão ortostática; Doenças cardiovasculares. INTRODUÇÃOA hipotensão ortostática (HO) é definida como uma queda da pressão arterial sistólica de ao menos 20 mmHg, ou por uma queda da pressão arterial diastólica de 10 mmHg após o indivíduo se levantar.(1-9) Seus efeitos clínicos variam desde a falta de sintomas até a presença• Artigo submetido para avaliação em 21/11/2014 e aceito para publicação em 02/04/2015 •