ArticleThe journals of gerontology. Series A, Biological sciences and medical sciences2024
Terminal Decline in Physical Function in Older Adults.
Article in The journals of gerontology. Series A, Biological sciences and medical sciences, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers.
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Who cites it
9 citing papers in PubMed.
- Nonspecific symptoms explain functional limitations in older adults better than disease-specific symptoms.European geriatric medicine · 2026Article
- Dysfunction in Olfactory Identification and Physical Function Decline in Older Adults.JAMA otolaryngology-- head & neck surgery · 2026Article
- Association between intrinsic capacity and disability before death among older adults: a decedent cohort study.The lancet. Healthy longevity · 2026Article
- Association Between Function-focused Training and Physical Function Among Community-dwelling Oldest-old Individuals: A Retrospective Study.Juntendo medical journal · 2026Article
- Trajectories of muscle strength and physical performance preceding dementia in older US and European populations.The journal of prevention of Alzheimer's disease · 2025Article
- Laboratory Test Use and Values in the Last Year of Life-a Matched Cohort Design.Canadian geriatrics journal : CGJ · 2025Article
- Enhancing ALS progression tracking with semi-supervised ALSFRS-R scores estimated from ambient home health monitoring.Frontiers in digital health · 2025Article
- Short-term Frailty Index Fluctuations in Older Adults: Noise or Signal?The journals of gerontology. Series A, Biological sciences and medical sciences · 2024Article
- Dynamical Network Stability Analysis of Multiple Biological Ages Provides a Framework for Understanding the Aging Process.The journals of gerontology. Series A, Biological sciences and medical sciences · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
4 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundIt is currently unclear whether (and when) physical function exhibits a terminal decline phase, that is, a substantial acceleration of decline in the very last years before death.
methods702 deceased adults aged 70 years and older from the Yale PEP Study provided 4 133 measurements of physical function (Short Physical Performance Battery, SPPB) up to 20 years before death. In addition, continuous gait and chair rise subtest scores (in seconds) were assessed. Generalized mixed regression models with random change points were used to estimate the onset and the steepness of terminal decline in physical function.
resultsDecline accelerated in the last years of life in all 3 measures of physical function. The onset of terminal decline occurred 1 year before death for the SPPB, and at 2.5 and 2.6 years before death for chair rise and gait speed test scores, respectively. Terminal declines in physical function were 6-8 times steeper than pre-terminal declines. Relative to those whose condition leading to death was frailty, participants who died from dementia and cancer had an up to 6 months earlier and 3 months later onset of terminal decline in SPPB, respectively.
conclusionsTerminal decline in physical function among older adults is comparable to the more established terminal decline phenomenon in cognition. Our results provide additional evidence of late-life rapid decline in physical function due to impending death.
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