Longitudinal association between social participation and trajectories of life satisfaction in late middle-aged Korean adults with physical disabilities.

Late middle-aged adults (50-64 years of age) who have physical disabilities often experience a decline in life satisfaction due to those bodily limitations. It is crucial to understand how their life satisfaction can be enhanced to support the social participation, health and wellbeing of this age group. This study examined the association between social participation and life satisfaction over time in Korean adults 50-64 years of age with physical disabilities.

Development of Machine Learning Models to Categorize Life Satisfaction in Older Adults Living Alone.

Objectives: This study aimed to identify factors associated with life satisfaction by developing machine learning (ML) models to predict life satisfaction in older adults living alone.

Methods: Data were extracted from 3,112 older adults participating in the 2020 Korea Senior Survey. We employed 5 ML models to classify the life satisfaction of older adults living alone: logistic Lasso regression, decision tree-based classification and regression tree (CART), C5.

Association between the length of stay in rehabilitation and mortality among the adults with Parkinson's disease: 2009-2019 Korean National Health Insurance Service Databases.

Background: Rehabilitation is recognized as an effective means of alleviating the symptoms of Parkinson's disease (PD) and improving the physical and cognitive functions of patients with PD. However, research often focuses on short-term outcomes such as functioning and quality of life. This study investigated the association between the length of stay in rehabilitation and mortality among patients with PD.

The association between self-rated health, number of family members, and cognitive function in community-dwelling older adults: Mediating role of depression.

With the increasing number of older adults, research on cognitive function has expanded. However, studies examining the mediating effect of depression on the association between complex factors and cognitive function in older adults are still insufficient. Additionally, there is a lack of studies that have investigated these relationships by integrating multiple factors related to the cognitive function of older adults.

Prevalence of Dysphonia and Dysphagia Among Adults in the United States in 2012 and 2022.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to compare the prevalence of dysphonia and dysphagia among adults in the United States between 2012 and 2022.

Method: A retrospective and cross-sectional design with national surveys was used. The 2012 and 2022 National Health Interview Surveys were utilized to estimate the number of adults reporting dysphonia and dysphagia in the past 12 months.

The Mediating Role of Social Participation in Motoric Cognitive Risk and its Relation to Depression and Loneliness in Older Adults.

Background: Motoric cognitive risk syndrome (MCR) reduces the quality of life, independence, and social interaction in older adults. Social participation is a potentially modifiable factor that benefits cognitive and mental health. This study explored the mediating roles of social participation between MCR and depression and between MCR and loneliness.

Effect of Physical Activity on Association between COVID-19 and Personal Life in Community-Dwelling Older Adults.

Our study investigated whether changes in physical activity due to COVID-19 mediate the association between quarantine or hospitalization due to COVID-19 and COVID-19 life impact score. A total of 154 participants (0.23%) were quarantined or hospitalized due to COVID-19.

Item-Level Psychometrics of the Meaningful Activity Participation Assessment (MAPA) Scale.

This study investigates the psychometric properties of the Meaningful Activity Participation Assessment-Meaning (MAPA-M) scale using the Rasch measurement model. For the psychometric properties of MAPA-M, principal component analysis, Rasch analysis, and differential item functioning analysis were conducted. Participants in this study were 480 older adults from the USC Well Elderly 2 study, recruited from 21 locations in the Los Angeles metropolitan area.

Association Between COVID-19 and Activities of Daily Living in Older Adults.

Older adults gradually decrease their independence with activities of daily living (ADL) due to aging. The coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19), the recent pandemic, can accelerate the decline in functions, such as ADL. This study aimed to examine whether there is an association between positive COVID-19 results and decreased independence with ADL in older adults.

Association Between Social Participation and Cognitive Function in Community-Dwelling Adults.

Social participation is associated with cognitive function; however, their causal relationships have not been reported yet. This study was designed to examine the autoregressive effects and bidirectional causal relationship between social participation and cognitive function. In this secondary longitudinal data analysis, we enrolled 4,834 Korean adults.

Item-level psychometrics of the Ascertain Dementia Eight-Item Informant Questionnaire.

The aim of this study is to evaluate the item-level psychometrics of the Ascertain Dementia Eight-Item Informant Questionnaire (AD-8) by examining its dimensionality, rating scale integrity, item fit statistics, item difficulty hierarchy, item-person match, and precision. We used confirmatory factor analysis and the Rasch rating scale model for analyzing the data extracted from the proxy versions of the 2019 and 2020 National Health and Aging Trends Study, USA. A total of 403 participants were included in the analysis.

Association between divorce and access to healthcare services among married immigrants: propensity score approaches.

Background: While divorce is a social determinant of health among married immigrants in Korea, its association with access to healthcare services is unclear. Given the rapid increase in the number of married immigrants in Korea, research is needed to improve minority groups' access to healthcare services. Here, we examined healthcare service utilization among married immigrants.

Social, behavioural, and functional characteristics of community-dwelling South Korean adults with moderate and severe cognitive impairment.

Objectives: This study used the 2016 Korean Longitudinal Study on Aging to investigate the social, behavioural, and functional characteristics of community-dwelling South Korean adults with cognitive impairment.

Methods: Participants were classified as normal, moderate impairment, and severe impairment according to an algorithm that combined the Korean Mini-Mental State Examination score and the number of difficulties in performing instrumental activities of daily living. Selected characteristics included grip strength, depression, participation in exercise and social activities, and living in a rural, urban, or suburban community.

Cross-National Comparisons of Cognitive and Physical Health in Older Adults Across China, Japan, and Korea: A Systematic Review.

Background: Cross-national studies are an emerging research area in public health. Specifically, cross-national health comparisons are important for understanding the factors driving the success or failure of public health policies. Therefore, this study systematically analyzed studies that compared health status (physical health and cognition) of the older adults using national panel data for three East Asian countries-China, Japan, and Korea.

The Role of Physical Activity and Depression on Quality of Life in Community-Dwelling Older Adults: Using Propensity Score Matching Approaches.

This study examined the association between achieving the recommended physical activity level and quality of life after controlling for depression. Health information from adults aged 65 years and older, who had participated in the seventh 2018 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, was used. Five covariate adjustment models were used to derive robust estimates of the association between physical activity practice levels, depression, and older adults' quality of life.