Publications by authors named "L Karavirta"
Background: Favorable movement behavior patterns, comprising more physical activity, less sedentary behavior, and sufficient sleep, may promote the maintenance of good quality of life (QoL) with advancing age. The aim of the present study was to investigate whether movement behaviors predict future changes in QoL among community-dwelling older adults over a four-year follow-up.
Methods: Participants were 75-, 80- and 85-year-old community-dwelling older adults (n = 203) followed up for 4 years.
To examine the reciprocal associations between walking performance, physical activity (PA), and perceived autonomy in outdoor mobility in 322 older adults. At baseline and four years later, a 6-min walk test assessed walking performance. A thigh-mounted accelerometer monitored relative PA (acceleration exceeding the individual's preferred walking intensity on the walk test) and absolute MVPA (acceleration exceeding 3 METs) in free-living.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: The aim of the study was to conduct exploratory analyses on the role of cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) and body composition in the association between physical activity and menopausal symptoms.
Methods: This was a cross-sectional (N = 298) study of women aged 51-59 years including a subsample of 82 women followed for 4 years. The severity of menopausal symptoms was assessed with the Menopause Rating Scale in total symptoms as well as using the somato-vegetative, psychological, and urogenital subscales.
Purpose: Habitual strength and power-demanding activities of daily life may support the maintenance of adequate lower extremity functioning with aging, but this has been sparingly explored. Hence, we examined whether the characteristics of free-living sit-to-stand (STS) transitions predict a decline in lower extremity functioning over a 4-yr follow-up.
Methods: A total of 340 community-dwelling older adults (60% women; age 75, 80, or 85 yr) participated in this prospective cohort study.
Background: Among older people, community mobility was reduced at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, but the longer-term changes are unclear.
Aims: To study lower extremity performance and car driving as predictors of changes in older adults' life-space mobility, autonomy in participation outdoors, and the risk of developing restricted life-space mobility from 2017 to 2022.
Methods: Life-space mobility (scoring range 0-120) and autonomy in participation outdoors (scoring range 0-20) were assessed in community-dwelling individuals (n = 657) in 2017-2018 (baseline age 75, 80, or 85 years), during the first wave of COVID-19 in 2020, and in 2021-2022.