Resumen de Three-Year Changes in Physical Activity and Decline in Physical Performance Over 9 Years of Follow-Up in Older Adults: The Invecchiare in Chianti Study

David Martínez Gómez, Stefania Bandinelli, Vieri del Panta, Kushang V. Patel, Jack M. Guralnik, Luigi Ferrucci

• Objectives To examine the associations between cumulative physical activity (PA) and its changes over 3 years and changes over 9 years of follow-up in physical performance in older adults.

  Design Longitudinal.

  Setting Community-based.

  Participants Men and women aged 65 and older from the Invecchiare in Chianti study (N = 782).

  Measurements Physical performance was assessed at baseline and at 3-, 6-, and 9-year follow-up using the Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB). PA was assessed through an interviewer-administered questionnaire at baseline and 3-year follow-up. Analyses were adjusted for education, body mass index, smoking, alcohol intake, coronary heart disease, stroke, peripheral arterial disease, cancer, lung disease, lower extremity osteoarthritis, depression, and Mini-Mental State Examination.

  Results Over 3 years of follow-up, 27.8% of participants were inactive, 52.2% were minimally active, and 20.0% were active, and the PA of 37.2% decreased, there was no change in PA of 50.1% and the PA of 12.7% increased. After adjustment for potential covariates, being mostly active (−1.08, 95% confidence interval (CI) = −1.43 to −0.73) and minimally active (−1.33, 95% CI = −1.53 to −1.12) over 3 years of follow-up was associated with less decline in SPPB score than being mostly inactive (−2.60, 95% CI = −2.92 to −2.27). When analyzing changes, increasing PA (−0.57, 95% CI = −1.01 to −0.12) was associated with less decline in SPPB score over 9 years than decreasing PA (−2.16, 95% CI = −2.42 to −1.89).

  Conclusion Maintaining or increasing PA levels may attenuate age-associated physical performance decline.