Syncope, fear of falling and quality of life among older adults: findings from The Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing (TILDA)
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2020Access:
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McCarthy, K., Ward, M., Romero-Ortuno, R. & Kenny, RA., Syncope, fear of falling and quality of life among older adults: findings from The Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing (TILDA), Frontiers in Cardiovascular Medicine, 2020Download Item:
92. Frontiers QoL syncope.pdf (PDF) 555.5Kb
Abstract:
Objective: Syncope is a prevalent condition that has a marked impact on quality of life. We examined the association between syncope and quality of life (QoL) and whether this association was explained by fear of falling (FoF).
Methods: We examined data from Wave 3 of The Irish Longitudinal Study on Aging (TILDA), of adults aged ≥50 years (n = 4,946) who were asked to report syncope and who completed the CASP-12 QoL instrument. Analyses were stratified by age and gender.
Results: Over 20% of participants reported having a previous syncopal episode, while 8% reported a faint, blackout or unexplained fall in the last year. QoL scores decreased as the burden of syncope increased: linear regression models adjusted for covariates showed that those having had two or more syncopal episodes in the last year reported a significantly lower CASP-12 score compared to those with none (p = 0.011). FoF partially mediated the association between syncope and QoL, particularly among younger participants.
Conclusions: Syncope is a common condition among older adults that has a deleterious effect on QoL, with ≥2 recent syncopal episodes having a particularly adverse impact on QoL. FoF is a potential pathway which may both explain this association and allow therapeutic interventions by health practitioners.
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https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fcvm.2020.00007/fullhttp://hdl.handle.net/2262/92705
Sponsor
Grant Number
Science Foundation Ireland (SFI)
18/FRL/6188
Department of Health and Children, Ireland
Author's Homepage:
http://people.tcd.ie/romeroorhttp://people.tcd.ie/wardm8
http://people.tcd.ie/rkenny
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PUBLISHEDType of material:
Journal ArticleURI:
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fcvm.2020.00007/fullhttp://hdl.handle.net/2262/92705
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Frontiers in Cardiovascular Medicine;Availability:
Full text availableKeywords:
Syncope, Quality of life, TILDA, CASP-12, Fear of fallingSubject (TCD):
AgeingDOI:
https://doi.org/10.3389/fcvm.2020.00007Licences: