The investigation of Relationship between Functional Disorders of Upper Extremity with Independence in Activities of Daily Living and Depression in Elderly

Introduction: Upper extremity functional disorders are common in the elderly .The primary goal of this study was to investigate the relationship between the functional disorders of the upper extremity with independence in ADL and geriatric depression in elderly people institutionalized at Neyshabur nursing homes. Method: This was a cross-sectional descriptive study conducted in 2017. The statistical population was composed of elderlies who were institutionalized at nursing homes. Via the census method, 72 elderly people were enrolled in the study according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Data were collected with the Quick Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand (Quick-DASH), the Shah version of the Modified Barthel Index(MBI) and the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) questionnaires. To analyze data, SPSS v. 20 with Descriptive statistics, Pearson`s correlation coefficient, Mann–Whitney U test, Independent-Samples T Test and the backward regression analysis were used. The Normality of Data was tested by one sample K-S. P < 0.05 were considered as Significant. Result: The results showed a Strong relationship between the functional level of the upper extremity and independence in ADL (P < 0. 001, r= - 0. 64), but there was no association with geriatric depression (P>0. 05, r = 0. 04). Conclusion: With respect to a strong relationship between the functional disorders of the upper extremity and independence in ADL, there is a need for designing a rehabilitative program for upper extremity disorders in order to prevent disability in ADL performance in geriatric nursing homes. As there was no significant relationship between depression and disability, there might be other influencing factors for depression.