Zeitschrift fur Gerontologie最新文献

To evaluate functional disabilities in elderly patients, geriatric assessment was performed in one general practice. Excluded from the study were patients with severe dementia and dependence. 178 patients were asked to participate and 144 accepted (mean age 78.7 +/- 5.8 years; number of diagnoses 5.2 +/- 2.6; f = 95, m = 49). Mini-mental-status examination showed moderately but significantly lower (p < 0.05) cognitive capacity in the age groups of 80-84 years (n = 37, 24.56 +/- 4.90 points) and of 85 years and older (n = 30, 25.14 +/- 3.11 points), but not in the group of 75-79 years (n = 46, 26.70 +/- 3.90 points) compared to the group of 70-74 years (n = 31, 27.65 +/- 2.59 points). Neither the Geriatric Depression Scale nor the Barthel-Index (activities of daily living) showed significant differences between the age groups. The score of the instrumental activities of daily living (Lawton Index) was significantly lower (p < 0.05) in the age group 85 years and older (4.1 +/- 2.5 points) compared to the age group of 70-74 years (6.1 +/- 2.4 points). Grip strength was significantly reduced (p < 0.01) in the age group 85 years and older as well as motility and balance scores (Tinetti test; p < 0.05) compared to the group of 70-74 years (43.21 +/- 16.27 kp and 64.87 +/- 19.81 kp, resp., 19.3 +/- 6.6 and 23.1 +/- 5.9 points). No correlation was found between the results of functional assessment and number of contacts with the general practitioner in the past year, number of prescribed drugs and number of diagnoses except for the depression test. There was a significant correlation between test score, number of contacts, and number of diagnoses (p < 0.05). Functional assessment resulted in new diagnoses of urinary incontinence in 7 patients and of mobility disorders in 17 patients. Cognitive impairment was suspected in 14 patients, depression in 2 patients.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

In the year 1987, 218 centenarians lived in Hungary. First the main demographic data were reported by the surveyors of the Central Statistics Office. The basis of the experience was gained on a limited population (123 subjects). The physicians' team was organized by the Gerontology Center of the Semmelweis University of Medicine. They carried out the detailed medical and environmental check-up. The medical and environmental experiences of the gerontologists were published (1). In our present paper we would like to show the different familial and other relationships of the oldest people. The 123 centenarians were scattered over the whole country, altogether in 67 larger or smaller settlements. More of them lived with a daughter (42%), with a son (14%), with a grandchild (7%), with other relatives (5%) and 3 persons lived together with their wives. We found that the subjects who lived with relatives had a better chance to live an active and meaningful life. The co-existence of several generations, the multilateral contacts of centenarians have a beneficial effect on the quality of life.

In this article, the demography of the elderly in Spain is scrutinized. The older population from 1960 to 1991 and their presumed development for the period from 2001-2020 is analyzed. According to these data, we attempt to determine the influence on life situation of older people according to several factors, such as changes of family structures and intergenerational relations as well as changes in social stereotypes, expected political and economical developments, and new concepts in medical care. In closing, we raise questions about the necessary future living structures in Spain.

The aim of the following longitudinal study of institutionalization was 1) to ascertain the risk of institutionalization of an elderly person, and 2) to examine the factors related to institutionalization in old age. The probability of an old person to spend some portion of his life in any home for the aged is much higher than the 5% (Western Germany) or the 8% (Eastern Germany) which can be observed at any point in time. In the individual life-course up to 43% of men and up to 70% of women become institutionalized. The factors related to institutionalization are age, sickness, housing conditions, and marital status, whereas the gender difference is explained entirely by other factors. Furthermore, the probability to become institutionalized in old age is also a function of mortality.

Elderly migrations are often considered as amenity-oriented long distance moves or as decisions for a change by moving into homes for the aged. The intention of this contribution is to prove the validity of these assumptions in the light of actual results of migration research in unified Germany. The findings of the spatial pattern of internal migrations as well as the characteristics of the migrants and their reasons underline the necessity of more differentiated considerations. They neither prove the relationships between migration participation and the available personal resources, nor the assumption that elderly migrants usually prefer long distance moves to attractive regions. Due to this, the relocations into institutions or retirement areas together only represent about one third of all migrations. The majority leaves their community and migrates to kin-oriented networks when they feel they are not able to manage their living conditions by themselves. Beside this exogenous reasons within the housing environments or the housing demands of the ethnic germans from eastern Europe force elderly to decide to move.

All directors of all nursing homes in the German state of Hessen were interviewed about dental care and treatment of their senior inhabitants. They were also asked for some critical remarks about their staff's education concerning both oral health and hygiene. The response-rate of almost 46% shows the proband interest in this topic. The results of the opinion poll recommended further co-operation between geriatrics and gerodontics.

In Germany, existing experiences with "sheltered housing" are not sufficient in order to precisely define the role of this new type of housing the aged within the overall network of care for the elderly. First, this article provides an overview of how different the needs for help in old age can be, and which types of supportive environments and services fit to different situations. In this context the potential and the limits of the "sheltered home" concept are described. Second, based on some policy considerations, a program of seven design directives for the planning of sheltered homes is proposed that integrates selected theoretical approaches of environmental psychology and geropsychology. As an example for the implementation of some of the design directives, the floor-plan of a recent project is described. Finally, the resistance of architects to a design, which is also based on psychological considerations is discussed. It is argued that the architects' philosophy about the fit between architecture and users' needs has a certain similarity to the "complementary-similarity-model," developed by Carp and Carp (1984).

The article describes the experiences made by Austrian and German counseling agencies dealing with housing adaptation with technical appliances for elderly people. The collected data from a questioning of counseling institutions, most of them still pilot projects, are assessed and special focus is given to the organization and institutionalization of the counseling agencies, to the access to the institutions, to the process and program of counseling, to obstacles and hindrances, to the costs and financing of the institutions or the adaptations.

This article discusses some aspects in Environmental Gerontology concerning the living conditions of elderly foreigners (migrants) who have been living and working in Germany for 20 to 30 years. First, deficits of the present research situation of elderly migrants are described. Second, with regard to the differentiation of "normal aging" and "aging with significant competence losses" two environment-relevant issues are analyzed: Living arrangement (home, residential unit, residential quarter) and the utilization of social services and institutions for the aged. The paper closes with some ideas on "ethnic aging and gerontological research".

The majority of old people live in private households and they want to remain there. Starting from this insight, the study is focused on the interaction between older people and their home environment. Some theoretical assumptions on the role of housing are presented, namely the competence theory perspective, the continuity theory perspective, the perspective of research on leisure time and everyday life activities, the environmental adaptation perspective, and the environmental gerontology perspective. Previous research has shown that there is a strong correlation between environmental-relevant competence loss (e.g., mobility impairment) and objective living arrangements. Little attention has been paid, however, to the subjective meaning of home in old age (e.g., processes like familiarity or stimulation), either with or without competence loss. This paper presents preliminary results of an investigation into that "Aging in Place" issue, based on semi-structured interviews with 84 participants between the age of 62-92 (M = 77 years). Forty-two subjects were in good health status, 42 suffered from severe mobility impairments. The participants were visited at home and all interviews were tape-recorded. On one hand, the general meaning of home, on the other, specific sections of the home environment were analyzed (most favorite place within the home, favorite meaningful things). The results revealed that the two groups of participants are similar as far as the general meaning of home is concerned. In the experience of the most favorite place at home, subjects suffering from mobility impairments are tending more to an environmental "centralization" than healthy subjects do. With respect to personal objects, the most often mentioned meaning was "reminiscence". By and large, the results of this work support the view that knowledge about the meaning of home can be of help to better understand how old people create their meaningful everyday life at home and why they want to "stay put"; in addition, the results can be used in planning living arrangements for people of all ages.