Relationship of perceived environmental barriers and disability in community-dwelling elderly in Taiwan – a population-based study

Abstract

BackgroundTo identify the relationship between perceived environmental barriers and disability in community-dwelling elderly.MethodsCross-sectional study in two community service centers in Tainan. We enrolled 200 community-dwelling residents, aged above 65 years, who had resided in the same community for at least 12 months. Basic activity of daily living (BADL) and instrumental activity of daily living (IADL) were assessed using the Hierarchy of Care Required (HCR). There were 59 participants in BADL disability and 109 in IADL disability. Perceived environmental barriers were assessed using the Craig Hospital Inventory of Environmental Factors (CHIEF). We used multinomial logistic regression to examine the relationship of perceived environmental barriers and disability.ResultsThe presence of perceived environmental barriers was related to BADL disability (OR = 4.39, 95% CI = 1.01-19.11) and IADL disability (IADL with difficulty in 1–2 tasks: OR = 9.93, 95% CI = 3.22-30.56; IADL with difficulty in more than 2 tasks: OR = 8.40, 95% CI = 1.83-38.51). The presence of physically/structurally perceived environmental barriers was related to BADL disability (OR = 4.90, 95% CI = 1.01-23.86) and IADL disability (IADL with difficulty in 1–2 tasks: OR = 4.61, 95% CI = 1.27-16.76; IADL with difficulty in more than 2 tasks: OR = 17.05, 95% CI = 2.82-103.30).ConclusionsPerceived environmental barriers are related to disability in community-dwelling elderly.

Factors associated with environmental barriers of people with disabilities in Mexico

“…One of the study's findings revealed that some of the disability-related factors (type, severity, cause, need for assistance, and use of devices) were more strongly associated with the perception of environmental barriers outside the home environment. This last finding corroborates those of previous studies, in which physical limitations (self-care and mobility) and the degree of disability were associated with a greater perception of environmental barriers 24 , 26 , 27 .…”

Functional disability and associated factors in elderly stroke survivors in Vitória, Brazil

“…Lien et al 30 associated the perception of environmental physical barriers with disability in basic and instrumental activities of daily living among elderly Thai people. Zhang et al 31 , assessing CVA survivors in rural China, found an association between physical barriers and limitations in performing activities and restrictions in participation.…”

Impacto das principais barreiras percebidas à prática de atividade física por aposentados de um município paulista

“…Para diagnosticar as barreiras que dificultam a prática regular de AF por parte do idoso, foi adaptado por Hirayama (2005) Outras barreiras, ainda, incluem falta de acesso a locais apropriados, à distância ou à falta de transporte (Flauskerud, & Nyamathi, 2000), mas que, observa-se não ser fator preponderante no presente estudo. As criações de espaços públicos destinados para esta prática são opções que já existem em algumas localidades; no entanto, muitos municípios ainda não dispõem de tais equipamentos, sendo um viés para a facilitação de espaços adequados para a AF (Lien, Guo, Chang, Lin, & Kuan, 2014). Ademais, a motivação para o deslocamento destas pessoas é outro fator que pondera sobre essa atitude (Lien, et al, 2014).…”

“…As criações de espaços públicos destinados para esta prática são opções que já existem em algumas localidades; no entanto, muitos municípios ainda não dispõem de tais equipamentos, sendo um viés para a facilitação de espaços adequados para a AF (Lien, Guo, Chang, Lin, & Kuan, 2014). Ademais, a motivação para o deslocamento destas pessoas é outro fator que pondera sobre essa atitude (Lien, et al, 2014).…”