Sedentary behavior as a predictor of functional disability in older adults

Abstract

The aim of this study was to identify the amount of time spent in sedentary behavior that may be critically related to functional disability in older adults. A cross-sectional study was conducted with a random sample of 624 older adults (65.1% women) aged 60 to 96 years. Perceived limitations in instrumental activities of daily living were used as indication of functional disability. Time spent in sedentary behavior was assessed using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ). The prevalence of functional disability was 29.4%. The mean total time spent in sedentary behavior was 576.51 ± 5.14 min/day. Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curves were used to identify cut-points for time spent in sedentary behavior that could discriminate functional disability in older adults. The results suggested that spending > 600.00 min/day and > 614.00 min/day in sedentary behavior, for men and women, respectively, was a discriminator for functional disability in the current study. These cut-points can be used to identify older adults who are most vulnerable to functional disability in future studies.