Journal article
Benzodiazepine Use and Physical Performance in Community-Dwelling Older Women
Journal of the American Geriatrics Society (JAGS), Vol.51(11), pp.1563-1570
11/2003
DOI: 10.1046/j.1532-5415.2003.51502.x
PMID: 14687385
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: To determine whether benzodiazepine use in older women increased the risk of decline in physical function. DESIGN: A four-year prospective cohort study. SETTING: The communities of Iowa and Washington counties, Iowa. PARTICIPANTS: Eight hundred eighty-five women aged 70 and older who had completed physical performance tests in 1988 and 1992. MEASUREMENTS: Benzodiazepine use was determined during in-home interviews and classified by dose, duration, indication for use, and half-life. Physical performance tests included an assessment of standing balance, walking speed (8-foot distance), and repeated chair raises. RESULTS: Ninety (10.2%) reported benzodiazepine use at baseline. After adjustment for baseline physical performance score and potential confounders, benzodiazepine use was associated with a greater decline in physical performance over 4 years than nonuse (β = -1.16; standard error (SE) = 0.25; P < .001). The use of higher-than-recommended dose was related to decline (β = -2.26; SE = 0.47; P < .001), and use of lower doses was not (β = -0.53; SE = 0.46; P = .246). Long-term use (≥3 years) was related to decline (β = -1.65; SE = 0.34; P < .001), whereas recent and past use were not. Similar results were obtained when restricting the sample to those without disability at baseline. CONCLUSION: This study provides evidence that older women who used benzodiazepines were at risk for decline in physical performance. Subgroup analyses indicated that risk was greater with use of higher-than-recommended doses or for long duration (≥3 years). These findings highlight the importance of using benzodiazepines at the lowest effective dose for a limited duration in older women.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Benzodiazepine Use and Physical Performance in Community-Dwelling Older Women
- Creators
- Shelly L. Gray - University of WashingtonBrenda W. J. H. Penninx - Wake Forest UniversityDavid K. Blough - From theMargaret B. Artz - University of MinnesotaJack M. Guralnik - National Institutes of HealthRobert B. Wallace - University of IowaDave M. Buchner - From theSchool of Pharmacy, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington†Department of Public Health Sciences, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, North Carolina‡College of Pharmacy, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota§Epidemiology and Demography Section, Laboratory of Epidemiology, Demography, and Biometry, National Institute on Aging, Bethesda, Maryland∥Department of Preventive Medicine and Environmental Health, University of Iowa, Iowa City¶Physical Activity and Health Branch, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Atlanta, Georgia♯Department of Epidemiology, University of Washington, Seattle, WashingtonCenter for Health Studies, Group Health Cooperative of Puget Sound, Seattle, WashingtonAndrea Z. LaCroix - University of Iowa
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Journal of the American Geriatrics Society (JAGS), Vol.51(11), pp.1563-1570
- DOI
- 10.1046/j.1532-5415.2003.51502.x
- PMID
- 14687385
- NLM abbreviation
- J Am Geriatr Soc
- ISSN
- 0002-8614
- eISSN
- 1532-5415
- Publisher
- Blackwell Science Inc
- Number of pages
- 8
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 11/2003
- Academic Unit
- Epidemiology; Injury Prevention Research Center; Internal Medicine
- Record Identifier
- 9984363601202771
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