Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine the changes in physical function and the rate of home exercise implementation.

Methods: The physical function assessment consisted of one-leg standing, tandem standing, 4 m walking speed, 2-step test, 40 cm standing up, and 5 times standing up test. Individual home exercises were instructed based on the evaluation results. Assessments were conducted before, one month, three months, and six months after the intervention.

Results: Five-step test and gait speed significantly improved after 1 month, and 2-step value and one-leg standing time significantly improved after 3 months. 6-month exercise participation rate was 88.1±11.9%. Physical activity was not significantly different between the pre- and post-intervention periods.

Conclusions: The results suggest that personalized home exercise can improve physical function and maintain physical activity even with home exercise alone.

Objective: The purpose of this study is to investigated the effects of participation to disability prevention program "Silver Rehab Exercises" on physical and psychological functions in the elderly who had high or low sense of life worth living.

Methods: The subjects of this study were the elderly persons participated disability prevention program "Silver Rehab Exercises", divided into two groups by the sense of life worth living was high or low using K-I questionnaires. Grip strength, one-leg standing time, K6 and K-I questionnaires were assessed in first year and next year.

Results: The grip strength, one-leg standing time and score of K6 in two groups was not significantly changed between first year and next year. The total score of K-I in group of low score of K-I was significantly increased in next year than in first year.

Conclusion: The physical and psychological function in the elderly who had low sense of life worth living was maintained and improved by participation to disability prevention program "Silver Rehab Exercises".

Purpose: This study investigated Changes in the prevalence of frailty in elderly orthopaedic outpatients before and after the COVID-19 epidemic, according to their chronological age.

Methods: This study included 966 elderly orthopaedic rehabilitation outpatients (aged ≧65 years) at our hospital. We assessed the presence of frailty by the Kihon checklist at the start of rehabilitation. Binary logistic regression analysis was performed using frailty, multiple troubles, physical function, nutritional status, oral function, outdoor activity, cognitive function, depressive mood as dependent variables.

Results: The COVID-19 epidemic was significantly associated with frailty and depressive mood among the early elderly, but not among the late elderly.

Conclusion: In COVID-19 epidemic, planning physical therapy evaluations and programs with prevention and improvement of frailty in mind is necessary, even in the early elderly.

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the living space 3 months after lumbar spine surgery and to clarify the characteristics of low activity.

Methods: Elderly lumbar spine surgery patients (aged 65 years or older) admitted to a spine ward were surveyed about their living space, health-related quality of life, pain, numbness, physical and mental functions, level of independence in daily living, and basic information before and 3 months after surgery and at discharge. Comparisons were made between preoperative and 3-month postoperative living space, with the group with a living space score of 56 or less being defined as the low activity group, and intergroup comparisons were conducted for each collection item.

Results: Significant differences were found in the frequency of going out "4-6 times a week" and "less than once a week". Comparisons between the low activity and non-low activity groups showed differences in the level of care required and exacerbation of pain before surgery, differences in physical function at discharge, and differences in mental health-related quality of life at 3 months after surgery.

Conclusion: There were significant differences in the subjects with narrowing of the living space at 3 months after lumbar spine surgery in the preoperative, discharge, and 3-month postoperative indices.

Purpose: In this study, we investigated the association between osteosarcopenia and frailty in older female orthopaedic outpatients with a history of cancer.

Methods: The study performed in our hospital included 287 older female orthopaedic outpatients (aged ≥65 years) with a history of cancer. Patients were categorized into those with a history of cancer and no cancer, and we performed intergroup comparison of the prevalence of osteoporosis, sarcopenia, and osteosarcopenia. Furthermore, each group was subcategorized into four subgroups as follows: non-applicable group, osteoporosis, sarcopenia, and osteosarcopenia. We performed intergroup comparison of the prevalence of frailty in these subgroups.

Results: The prevalence of sarcopenia and osteosarcopenia was higher in patients with a history of cancer than in with a no history of cancer. The prevalence of frailty in osteosarcopenia of only patients with a history of cancer was high.

Conclusion: Evaluation and treatment of osteosarcopenia and frailty are important in older female orthopaedic outpatients with a history of cancer.

Objective: This study aimed to compare the difference between the life-space in two seasons ―winter and spring― among elderly people living in snowy and cold regions, as well as the life-space stratified by gender and the presence of frailty.

Methods: The participants were elderly residents of Tobetsu, Hokkaido, Japan, belonging to a senior citizens' club. The participants were classified into robust and pre-frail/frail groups according to the result of the Kihon checklist administered in winter. The Life-Space Assessment (LSA) was conducted in winter and spring, respectively. Seasonal changes in LSA were compared from four different perspectives―by all participants, gender and frailty status. The changes in maximum reach and frequency of outings due to LSA were also examined.

Results: Compared to spring, LSA in winter was significantly lower for all subjects (p=0.004,95%CI 2.67-13.34) and for the robust group (p=0.038,95%CI 0.52-16.48). Changes in maximum reach and frequency of outings were mainly observed at "in-town" and "out-of-town" levels.

Conclusion: The effects of season and the presence of frailty should be taken into account when proposing a long-term care prevention activities for elderly people living in snowy and cold regions.

Objective: This study investigated the relationship between falls and home-based physical function assessment methods to improve fall risk assessment for home-visit rehabilitation users.

Methods: This cross-sectional study examined 88 older adults requiring support and nursing care. The participants were divided into two groups according to the presence or absence of a fall history over the past 1 year. An intergroup comparison was performed using the medical records, as well as the physical function assessments (grip strength, SS-5, one-leg standing time with eyes open) and FRI-21, and the relationships thereof were analyzed. For the physical function assessments, cutoff values were determined for the groups with and without a fall history, and odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated.

Results: The group with a fall history had significantly lower physical function, as well as a higher FRI-21, than the group without a fall history. The cutoff value and odds ratio for grip strength were 17.50 kg and 3.95 (95%CI, 1.56-10.00), respectively; for SS-5 time were 18.38 s and 8.17 s (95%CI, 2.74-24.38), respectively; and for one-leg standing time with eyes open were 5.58 s and 4.60 s (95%CI, 0.88-23.94), respectively.

Conclusion: A physical function assessment performed at home for home-visit rehabilitation users was associated with a history of falls, suggesting that it may serve as an index for assessing fall risk.

Objectives: This study aimed to investigate factors, focusing on the Kihon Checklist (KCL) domains, related to exercise behavior in community-dwelling robust older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: Post surveys using KCL were conducted in 2018 and 2020 among older adults in Kinokawa City who were not certified as requiring long-term care, respectively. A total of 3698 participants (1972 women, age 70.6±3.7 years), excluding those with a KCL of 4 or more points at baseline, were included in the analysis. In the follow-up survey, we added a question about exercise behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the participants were divided into exercise and non-exercise groups.

Results: The non-exercise group included 704 patients (19.0%). Logistic regression analysis showed that depressive mood was significantly associated with the non-exercise group (odds ratio 1.52, 95% confidence interval 1.14-2.01, p<0.01).

Conclusions: Older adults with depressive moods in the KCL domain may have difficulty establishing exercise during the COVID-19 pandemic, even though they are robust in the KCL total score.

Purpose: This study aimed to validate and assess the reliability of IMUrater, a method for measuring joint angles by placing Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) sensors on the measurer's body.

Methods: Sixteen healthy adults were included, and the validity and reliability of IMUrater were compared with an optical motion capture (OMC) system using cameras for motion analysis.

Results: The coefficient of multiple correlation (CMC) and root mean square error (RMSE) between the IMUrater and the OMC-based method were 0.93 and 31.20 degrees, respectively. Within sessions, IMUrater showed a CMC of 0.95, a RMSE of 19.40 degrees, and an intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) of 0.92, while between sessions, the values were 0.85, 35.74 degrees, and 0.19, respectively.

Conclusion: IMUrater demonstrated high validity in relative joint angles. Within-session reliability was high, with strong agreement in time series waveform data indicated by CMC. However, between-session reliability showed lower agreement, with substantial discrepancies observed in absolute angle measurements.

Objectives: Community Day Houses (CDHs) are spaces intended for community gatherings that are open to anyone over 65 years old. However, it is crucial to reassess the demand for personalized care among community-dwelling older adults who participate in these programs. Therefore, the purpose of this pilot cross-sectional study was to identify the characteristics of community-dwelling older CDH attendees and compare these characteristics with non-attendees.

Methods: The study recruited 112 older adults living in the community of Ibaraki City. Of these, 66 were CDH attendees (aged 80.5±6.8) and 46 were non-attendees (aged 75.0±6.7). Cognitive function, depressive mood, higher-level functional capacity, grip strength, walking speed, bone mineral density, and skeletal muscle mass were measured in both groups. Higher-level functional capacity was also evaluated using the Japan Science and Technology Agency Index of Competence questionnaire-based scale. Analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) tests adjusted for age, sex, and body mass index were performed to compare the two groups, and a sub-analysis of 48 older adults with disabilities was also conducted.

Results: The ANCOVA results revealed that participants who attended CDHs had significantly lower grip strength and bone mineral density, as well as slower walking speed. In the secondary analysis, there were no significant differences among CDH users with disabilities.

Conclusions: Individualized programming may be necessary to address the physical function improvement needs of CDH attendees.

Purpose: We aimed to determine the physical and social characteristics of participants with decreased verbal fluency test (VFT) performance who participated in long-term care prevention projects. Furthermore, we aimed to examine the potential use of VFT as an assessment of dementia and frailty prevention in those projects.

Methods: We assessed VFT, physical frailty, grip strength, 5m walk, one-leg stand, five times stand test, and functional reach test as physical functions, and social frailty and social cohesion of social capital as social aspects in 77 participants in "Kayoi-no-ba". The participants were divided into a healthy group and a decreased VFT group and compared.

Results: No significant differences in basic information and health status were found between the healthy and the decreased VFT group. Regarding physical function, we found a significant difference in time in the one-leg stand between the decreased VFT group and the healthy group (28.6±22.1 s vs. 44.5±21.1 s, p=0.009). No significant differences were found in other physical function items. Regarding the social dimension, there was significantly less non-social frailty in the decreased VFT group compared to the healthy group (p=0.026), and significantly higher social cohesion (5.5±1.8 points vs. 4.6±1.4 points, p=0.05).

Conclusion: The decreased VFT group showed declining balance and changing social involvement, indicating that VFT could be used to assess dementia and frailty prevention.