ABSTRACT
Objective: To propose and evaluate the psychometric properties of a multidimensional measure of activities of daily living (ADLs) based on the Katz and Lawton indices for Alzheimer's disease (AD) and mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Methods: In this study, 85 patients with MCI and 93 with AD, stratified by age (≤ 74 years, > 74 years), completed the Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) and the Geriatric Depression Scale, and their caregivers completed scales for ADLs. Construct validity (factor analysis), reliability (internal consistency), and criterion-related validity (receiver operating characteristic analysis and logistic regression) were assessed. Results: Three factors of ADL (self-care, domestic activities, and complex activities) were identified and used for item reorganization and for the creation of a new inventory, called the General Activities of Daily Living Scale (GADL). The components showed good internal consistency (> 0.800) and moderate (younger participants) or high (older participants) accuracy for the distinction between MCI and AD. An additive effect was found between the GADL complex ADLs and global ADLs with the MMSE for the correct classification of younger patients. Conclusion: The GADL showed evidence of validity and reliability for the Brazilian elderly population. It may also play an important role in the differential diagnosis of MCI and AD. .
Subject(s)
Aged , Aged, 80 and over , Female , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Activities of Daily Living , Alzheimer Disease/diagnosis , Cognitive Dysfunction/diagnosis , Surveys and Questionnaires , Age Factors , Brazil , Diagnosis, Differential , Neuropsychological Tests , Psychometrics , Surveys and Questionnaires/standards , Reference Values , Reproducibility of Results , Sensitivity and Specificity , Socioeconomic Factors , Statistics, NonparametricABSTRACT
No Brasil, a distribuiçäo etária do tétano é pouco estudada. Neste trabalho foi analisada a evoluçäo histórica do coeficiente de mortalidade por tétano no Brasil, entre 1980 e 1991, e estabelecida a distribuiçäo dos casos pela faixa etária, tendo por base o Sistema de Informaçöes de Mortalidade. Os coeficientes de mortalidade por faixa etária foram calculados conforme os dados fornecidos pela FUNASA-CENEPI, DATASUS e IBGE. Utilizou-se o teste qui-quadrado para comparar os coeficientes de mortalidade para as diversas faixas etárias, por ano e regiäo do país. Houve declínio dos coeficientes de mortalidade em todas as faixas etárias, exceto nos idosos. Nas regiöes Norte e Sul houve aumento do coeficiente de mortalidade nos idosos. No Brasil, o tétano vem apresentando comportamento epidemiológico semelhante ao observado oos países desenvolvidos, onde os idosos representam o principal grupo de risco para adoecer e morrer da doença