Association between body composition and stair negotiation ability among individuals >55 years of age: a cross-sectional study.

Background: Loss of muscle strength exerts a considerable impact on the quality of life and mortality of older adults. The present household survey study measured body composition and muscle strength with the aim of analyzing the roles of low lean mass, low muscle strength and obesity in stair negotiation ability and the effect of comorbidities on the relationship between body composition and functional capacity.

Methods: Body composition was assessed using bioelectrical impedance analysis and muscle strength was assessed with a hand grip dynamometer.

Frequency and factors associated with falls in adults aged 55 years or more.

Objective: The objective of this study is to analyze the frequency and factors associated with falls in adults aged 55 years or more.

Methods: This is a study inserted into another population-based study with representative sample of persons aged 40 years or more of the urban area in a medium-sized municipality of the State of Paraná, Brazil, in 2011. That study obtained demographic and socioeconomic data and characteristics related to life habits, health conditions, and functional capacity (n = 1,180).

Lipids and all-cause mortality among older adults: a 12-year follow-up study.

This is a 12-year follow-up cohort study with 800 people (60-85 years old). The association between lipid disorders and mortality was analysed by Cox proportional hazard adjusted model. All-cause mortality was considered the dependent variable, and lipid disorders as independent variables: total cholesterol (TC) >200 and <170 mg/dl, HDL-c <35 and 40, LDL-c >100 and 130, and triglycerides (TG) >50.

Influenza vaccination in non-institutionalized elderly: a population-based study in a medium-sized city in Southern Brazil.

Vaccination is the most effective measure to prevent the complications of influenza. This population-based study aimed to estimate influenza vaccine coverage in non-institutionalized elderly, analyze the factors involved in lack of influenza vaccine uptake, and identify post-vaccination adverse effects. The study population lived in an urban neighborhood in Southern Brazil, and the sample consisted of 425 elderly.