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Does tandem balance test predict cognitive impairment among older adults? Findings from Longitudinal Ageing Study in India, 2017–18

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Abstract

Background

Ageing entails a decline in physical and functional abilities including a reduced body balance due to complex integration and coordination of sensory acuity, motor control, neural and cognitive functions. This study aimed to examine the association between tandem balance test and cognitive impairment among older Indian adults. The study also examined the gender differentials in the associations with an interaction analysis.

Methods

Data for this study were drawn from the recent release of the Longitudinal Ageing Study in India (2017–18). The total sample size for the present study included 26,539 older adults age 60 years and above. Descriptive statistics and bivariate analysis were used to present the preliminary results. Two sample proportion test was used to evaluate the significance for gender differences. Further, multivariable binary logistic regression analysis was used to evaluate the independent association of balance test performance and cognitive impairment among older adults.

Results

Nearly 16% of male and 26% of female older adults could not finish full tandem test in this study. There were significant gender differences in cognitive impairment among older adults (male—6.5% and female—18.9%). The likelihood of cognitive impairment was significantly higher among older adults who could not finish the full tandem test compared to those who finished the tandem test [AOR: 1.22; CI: 1.09–1.36]. The interaction model revealed that older females who could not finish the full tandem test were 2.11 times significantly more likely to be cognitively impaired in reference to older males who finished the full tandem test [AOR: 2.11; CI: 1.81,2.45]. Similarly, older females who finished the full tandem test were 2.42 times significantly more likely to be cognitively impaired in reference to older males who finished the full tandem test [AOR: 2.42; CI: 2.02,2.88].

Conclusion

The findings of the study suggest that healthcare professionals working with older adults should consider the results of a balance test to screen for their risk of cognitive impairment. Results from the relationship between failing to finish the tandem test and cognitive impairment may be helpful for identifying older men and women who are at higher risk of experiencing mobility decline and their progression to dementia.

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Availability of data and material

The data are available at the Gateway to Global Aging Data (www.g2aging.org).

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Acknowledgements

The Longitudinal Ageing Study in India Project is funded by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, the National Institute on Ageing (R01 AG042778, R01 AG030153), and United Nations Population Fund, India.

Funding

No funding was received for the study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Family & Generations, International Institute for Population Sciences, Mumbai, 400088, Maharashtra, India

    T. Muhammad

  2. Project Concern International (PCI), Lucknow, India

    Shobhit Srivastava

  3. Marketxcel Data Matrix Pvt Ltd, New Delhi, India

    Paramita Debnath

  4. India Health Action Trust (IHAT), Lucknow, India

    Pradeep Kumar

  5. Population Research Centre (PRC), Dharwad, India

    Manish Kumar

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Contributions

Conceived and designed the research paper: TM and SS; analyzed the data: SS and TM; Contributed agents/materials/analysis tools: TM, MK, and PK; Wrote the manuscript: TM, SS, PD, PK and MK; Refined the manuscript: SS and TM. All authors reviewed the manuscript. All authors have read and approved the manuscript.

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Correspondence to T. Muhammad.

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The authors declare that there is no competing interest.

Ethics approval and consent to participate

The study was approved by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) Ethics Committee in January 2017 and written or oral informed consent was obtained from the participants. All methods were carried out in accordance with relevant guidelines and regulations and in accordance with the World Medical Association Declaration of Helsinki and good clinical practice guidelines.

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Muhammad, T., Srivastava, S., Debnath, P. et al. Does tandem balance test predict cognitive impairment among older adults? Findings from Longitudinal Ageing Study in India, 2017–18. Aging Clin Exp Res 35, 855–865 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40520-023-02359-1

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