Niina Savikko

Social Contacts and Their Relationship to Loneliness among Aged People – A Population-Based Study

Background: Emotional loneliness and social isolation are major problems in old age. These concepts are interrelated and often used interchangeably, but few studies have investigated them simultaneously thus trying to clarify their relationship. Objectives: To describe the prevalence of loneliness among aged Finns and to study the relationship of loneliness with the frequency of social contacts, with older people’s expectations and satisfaction of their human relationships. Especially, we wanted to clarify whether emotional loneliness is a separate concept from social isolation. Methods:The data were collected with a postal questionnaire. Background information, feelings of loneliness, number of friends, frequency of contacts with children, grandchildren and friends, the expectations of frequency of contacts as well as satisfaction of the contacts were inquired. The questionnaire was sent to a random sample of 6,786 aged people (>74 years) in various urban and rural areas in Finland. We report here the results of community-dwelling respondents (n = 4,113). Main Results: More than one third of the respondents (39.4%) suffered from loneliness. Feeling of loneliness was not associated with the frequency of contacts with children and friends but rather with expectations and satisfaction of these contacts. The most powerful predictors of loneliness were living alone, depression, experienced poor understanding by the nearest, and unfulfilled expectations of contacts with friends. Conclusion: Our findings support the view that emotional loneliness is a separate concept from social isolation. This has implications for practice. Interventions aiming at relieving loneliness should be focused on enabling an individual to reflect her own expectations and inner feelings of loneliness.

Effects of the Finnish Alzheimer disease exercise trial (FINALEX): a randomized controlled trial.

IMPORTANCE Few rigorous clinical trials have investigated the effectiveness of exercise on the physical functioning of patients with Alzheimer disease (AD). OBJECTIVES To investigate the effects of intense and long-term exercise on the physical functioning and mobility of home-dwelling patients with AD and to explore its effects on the use and costs of health and social services. DESIGN A randomized controlled trial. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS A total of 210 home-dwelling patients with AD living with their spousal caregiver. INTERVENTIONS The 3 trial arms included (1) group-based exercise (GE; 4-hour sessions with approximately 1-hour training) and (2) tailored home-based exercise (HE; 1-hour training), both twice a week for 1 year, and (3) a control group (CG) receiving the usual community care. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES The Functional Independence Measure (FIM), the Short Physical Performance Battery, and information on the use and costs of social and health care services. RESULTS All groups deteriorated in functioning during the year after randomization, but deterioration was significantly faster in the CG than in the HE or GE group at 6 (P = .003) and 12 (P = .015) months. The FIM changes at 12 months were -7.1 (95% CI, -3.7 to -10.5), -10.3 (95% CI, -6.7 to -13.9), and -14.4 (95% CI, -10.9 to -18.0) in the HE group, GE group, and CG, respectively. The HE and GE groups had significantly fewer falls than the CG during the follow-up year. The total costs of health and social services for the HE patient-caregiver dyads (in US dollars per dyad per year) were

Effect of Physical Exercise on Cognitive Performance in Older Adults with Mild Cognitive Impairment or Dementia: A Systematic Review

25,112 (95% CI,

Family care as collaboration: effectiveness of a multicomponent support program for elderly couples with dementia. Randomized controlled intervention study.

17,642 to

Efficacy of physical exercise intervention on mobility and physical functioning in older people with dementia: a systematic review.

32,581) (P = .13 for comparison with the CG),

Effects of Exercise on Cognition: The Finnish Alzheimer Disease Exercise Trial: A Randomized, Controlled Trial

22,066 in the GE group (

Eight-Year Trends in the Use of Opioids, Other Analgesics, and Psychotropic Medications Among Institutionalized Older People in Finland

15,931 to

Psychosocial group intervention to enhance self-management skills of people with dementia and their caregivers: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

28,199; P = .03 vs CG), and

Effects of Self‐Management Groups for People with Dementia and Their Spouses—Randomized Controlled Trial

34,121 (

Work Empowerment as Experienced by Nurses in Elderly Care

24,559 to