PTSD is negatively associated with physical performance and physical function in older overweight military Veterans.

Loading...

Date

2014-01

Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

Repository Usage Stats

5
views
44
downloads

Citation Stats

Attention Stats

Abstract

This study examines the effect of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) on function and physical performance in older overweight military Veterans with comorbid conditions. This is a secondary data analysis of older Veterans (mean age = 62.9 yr) participating in a physical activity counseling trial. Study participants with PTSD (n = 67) and without PTSD (n = 235) were identified. Self-reported physical function (36-item Short Form Health Survey) and directly measured physical performance (mobility, aerobic endurance, strength) were assessed. Multivariate analyses of variance controlling for demographic factors and psychiatric disorders demonstrated significant physical impairment among those with PTSD. PTSD was negatively associated with self-reported physical function, functioning in daily activities, and general health (p < 0.01). Those with PTSD also performed significantly worse on tests of lower-limb function (p < 0.05). Despite being significantly younger, Veterans with PTSD had comparable scores on gait speed, aerobic endurance, grip strength, and bodily pain compared with Veterans without PTSD. This study provides preliminary data for the negative association between PTSD and physical function in older military Veterans. These data highlight the importance of ongoing monitoring of physical performance among returning Veterans with PTSD and intervening in older overweight Veterans with PTSD, whose physical performance scores are indicative of accelerated risk of premature functional aging.

Department

Description

Provenance

Subjects

Humans, Exercise Therapy, Retrospective Studies, Follow-Up Studies, Motor Activity, Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic, Health Status, Quality of Life, Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Middle Aged, Military Personnel, Veterans, Female, Male, Surveys and Questionnaires

Citation

Published Version (Please cite this version)

10.1682/jrrd.2013.04.0091

Publication Info

Hall, Katherine S, Jean C Beckham, Hayden B Bosworth, Richard Sloane, Carl F Pieper and Miriam C Morey (2014). PTSD is negatively associated with physical performance and physical function in older overweight military Veterans. Journal of rehabilitation research and development, 51(2). pp. 285–295. 10.1682/jrrd.2013.04.0091 Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/10161/30014.

This is constructed from limited available data and may be imprecise. To cite this article, please review & use the official citation provided by the journal.

Scholars@Duke

Hall

Katherine Shepherd Hall

Professor in Medicine

My research is focused on developing evidence-based physical activity interventions for older adults with an eye to preserving functional independence and quality of life. I am particularly interested in developing exercise programs to promote physical and psychological well-being among older veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). 

Beckham

Jean Crowell Beckham

Professor in Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences

Interest in assessment and treatment of trauma, particularly as occurs for both women and men during military service; focus in treatment outcome of differential and collective contribution for psychopharmacological and behavioral interventions in PTSD populations; long term physical health effects of chronic posttraumatic stress disorder.

Pieper

Carl F. Pieper

Professor of Biostatistics & Bioinformatics

Analytic Interests.

1) Issues in the Design of Medical Experiments: I explore the use of reliability/generalizability models in experimental design. In addition to incorporation of reliability, I study powering longitudinal trials with multiple outcomes and substantial missing data using Mixed models.

2) Issues in the Analysis of Repeated Measures Designs & Longitudinal Data: Use of Hierarchical Linear Models (HLM) or Mixed Models in modeling trajectories of multiple variables over time (e.g., physical and cognitive functioning and Blood Pressure). My current work involves methodologies in simultaneous estimation of trajectories for multiple variables within and between domains, modeling co-occuring change.

Areas of Substantive interest: (1) Experimental design and analysis in gerontology and geriatrics, and psychiatry,
(2) Multivariate repeated measures designs,

Morey

Miriam C. Morey

Professor Emeritus of Medicine

The general focus of Dr. Morey's work is exercise and aging. All of her research examines how physical activity, exercise training, or physical fitness influence the physical functioning and/or pyschosocial quality of life of older adults. She directs a supervised hospital-based program for older adults, which is used to examine longitudinally the effects of exercise training on the musculoskeletal, articular, and cardiorespiratory systems. Furthermore, she has a number of studies that examine how system-wide impairments serve as preclinical indicators of disability and overall decline in the quality of life of older adults. Ongoing studies examine the role of exercise training in attenuation or reversal of functional decline and examination of the effectivenes of different methods of physical activity counseling for home-based exercise.
Dr. Morey's research evolves directly from three sources: (1) primary analyses of clinical trials regarding the impact of exercise on a specific outcome, (2) longitudinal analyses of participants in ongoing clinical exercise programs, and (3) secondary analyses of clinical trials which involve exercise or physical activity.
Although physical activity and exercise are the interventions of interest in all of these studies, the outcomes of interest vary considerably. Within the broad domain of aging, Dr. Morey has examined the impact of exercise on physical performance, well-being, sleep quality, disability, and functional limitations. More recently, Dr. Morey has several studies focusing on the effect of tailored telephone physical activity counseling to improve function in elders. Specific studies are targeted to newly diagnosed cancer survivors, long-term cancer survivors, and frail elders in geriatric and primary care settings.
Dr. Morey's expertise is in the area of exercise physiology and aging. She has specific knowledge in age-related changes in cardiorespiratory functioning, the effects of habitual exercise (longitudinal) on performance, and exercise programming for older adults.


Key Words: Exercise, maximal oxygen uptake, cardiorespiratory fitness, aging, disability,
functional limitations, longitudinal


Unless otherwise indicated, scholarly articles published by Duke faculty members are made available here with a CC-BY-NC (Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial) license, as enabled by the Duke Open Access Policy. If you wish to use the materials in ways not already permitted under CC-BY-NC, please consult the copyright owner. Other materials are made available here through the author’s grant of a non-exclusive license to make their work openly accessible.