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. 2021;25(7):921-925.
doi: 10.1007/s12603-021-1648-9.

Impact of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Outbreak on Activity and Exercise Levels among Older Patients

K Kawamura  1 , M Kamiya, S Suzumura, K Maki, I Ueda, N Itoh, A Osawa, S Maeshima, H Arai, I Kondo
Affiliations

Impact of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Outbreak on Activity and Exercise Levels among Older Patients

K Kawamura et al. J Nutr Health Aging. 2021.

Abstract

This study aimed to clarify the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 outbreak on the levels of activity among older patients with frailty or underlying diseases. A total of 175 patients (79.0±7.0 years) undergoing outpatient or home-based rehabilitation, stratified into groups, based on frailty status. The percentage of patients who went out at least once a week decreased after the outbreak from 91% to 87%, from 65% to 46%, and from 47% to 36% in the non-frail, frail, and nursing care requirement groups, respectively. The proportion of older patients participating in exercise during the outbreak was 75%, 51%, and 41% in the non-frail, frail, and nursing care requirement groups, respectively. The proportion of older patients participating in voluntary exercise after instruction was lowest in the frail group (35%). Older patients with frailty are susceptible to the negative effects of refraining from physical activity and require careful management.

Keywords: COVID-19; activity; frailty; nursing care; older patients.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have no potential conflicts of interest related to this study. This work was supported by the Research Funding for Longevity Sciences (20-27) from the National Center for Geriatrics and Gerontology (NCGG), Japan.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Status of exercise and going out
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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