Life-Space Mobility Trajectories After Elective Surgery in Older Adults.
Many older adults still have restricted mobility six months after elective surgery.
Life-Space Mobility Trajectories After Elective Surgery in Older Adults.
IMPORTANCE: The number of older adults living with frailty who undergo surgery is rapidly increasing worldwide.
To examine postoperative recovery using life-space mobility among older adults living with frailty and to identify factors associated with restricted mobility and readmission.
DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: This cohort study within the larger Functional Improvement Trajectories After Surgery study used a convergent mixed-methods exploratory design.
of older adults still had restricted mobility six months after their surgery
This study included 204 participants (mean [SD] age, 72.8 [5.6] years; 108 males [53%]).
The mean (SD) life-space mobility was 65.1 (26.7) presurgery, 56.6 (26.7) at 2 months postsurgery, and 64.9 (25.9) at 6 months postsurgery.
Restricted mobility was associated with being a woman (odds ratio [OR], 4.72; 95% CI, 2.27-9.84), greater frailty (OR, 10.42; 95% CI, 3.56-30.49), and concurrent need for support from formal or informal caregivers (OR, 5.43; 95% CI, 2.72-10.86).
Elevated-risk surgery was associated with hospital readmission at 6 months (OR, 3.18; 95% CI, 1.48-7.25).
In this nested cohort study, mean life-space mobility recovered by 6 months postsurgery, but 41% of older adults still had restricted mobility.
Being a woman, having greater frailty, and needing support from caregivers were associated with poor recovery.
Integrating life-space assessments into individualized perioperative care planning may enhance evaluation of functional recovery, inform shared decision-making, and guide support strategies.