Researchers Help Boston Seniors Through "Mobilize Boston"
By Jennifer Davis, Hebrew Senior Life staff
How well are Boston seniors aging? Are they heart healthy? Are their bones strong? Are they able to get around on their own, or do they require some assistance? These are just a few of the questions that Institute for Aging Research (IFAR) investigators are asking in one of the most comprehensive studies on aging ever conducted.
In 2006, funded by a five-year National Institute on Aging grant, a team of researchers, headed by principal investigator and IFAR co-director Lewis A. Lipsitz, M.D., embarked on a monumental project called Maintenance of Balance, Independent Living, Intellect and Zest in the Elderly of Boston, or Mobilize Boston. The Mobilize project team is collecting information on community dwelling seniors that will help researchers learn how older adults can maintain good health and remain independent longer.
Four research projects are associated with Mobilize Boston, all of which seek to address the problem of falls, a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in older adults. IFAR researchers head two of the projects. Senior scientist Marian T. Hannan, D.Sc., M.P.H., is principal investigator on a foot disorders study. Despite the clinical impression that they are a common cause of falls in older adults, little population data exist to support this assumption. The goal of Dr. Hannan’s study is to determine the prevalence of foot disorders, the incidence of specific conditions, and how they contribute to falls and disability among older adults.
The other IFAR-based study is led by Dr. Lipsitz and is focused on better understanding how cerebrovascular mechanisms may relate to falls. Collaborators from other institutions head projects that include a study that will examine how pain contributes to falls and functional decline in old age and a study to determine whether sensory stimulation may improve balance.
Mobilize Boston plans to enroll 800 seniors from within a five-mile radius of Hebrew Rehabilitation Center in Roslindale. The multidisciplinary team assembled for Mobilize Boston includes a number of IFAR faculty, including Medical Research Director Dr. Douglas P. Kiel, who heads the epidemiology core, and Richard D. Jones, Sc.D., associate director of Health and Policy Research for IFAR, who is in charge of data management and analysis. Peggy Gagnon, R.N., directs the project, and Marcie Freeman, M.Ed., oversees outreach and recruitment.
In order to reach their recruitment goal, IFAR collaborated with senior statistician Anthony Roman from the University of Massachusetts/Boston’s Center for Survey Research (CSR), who played a critical role in identifying and notifying potential households. He contributed specialized expertise that ensures potential participants represent a cross-section of Boston seniors. In addition, an advisory board made up of local leaders in the area of senior services was assembled to serve as liaisons to the communities where recruitment is taking place. They are familiar with the neighborhoods in which the seniors live, and their advice and guidance are also important to a successful recruitment process.
Once a potential participant has been identified by CSR, IFAR research assistants conduct a home visit. Their evaluations determine whether or not an individual is suited to the study. Visiting a senior at home allows the research assistant to collect information about the environment in which the senior lives and the types of supports he or she has in place.
Once a subject is enrolled, he or she undergoes a thorough clinical evaluation, which will be repeated each year for two years. Judy Coulombre, R.N., and Mark Rivinus, R.N., are the clinicians on the research team who put the participants through their paces in a visit that can last as long as three and a half hours.
The series of assessments begins with standard procedures such as blood tests for cholesterol levels, and measuring weight and height. Then a research assistant tests the participant’s sense of balance. The participant stands on a section of floor that is wired with electronic sensors that measure to what extent he or she sways one way or another while standing still.
Next, the subject’s cerebral blood flow is monitored under varying conditions using transcranial Doppler technology. Research Assistant Ike Iloputaife, BS, coordinates this part of the study.
As the visit progresses, participants undergo a musculoskeletal exam and foot assessment. A walk across a foot pressure mat provides a computer footprint that reveals, for example, a tendency to favor one foot over the other or whether the foot rolls inward or outward with each step. A test called Semmes Weinstein measures foot sensation, which also contributes to balance and mobility.
A study participant’s visit concludes with probably the most challenging event, yet a favorite among the participants – a short physical performance battery. Using a hydraulic leg press machine, the clinicians put the seniors through a series of progressively difficult exercises to determine leg muscle and power strength.
The research team goes out of its way to make sure the participating seniors are comfortable in all situations and that they enjoy the experience. After all, the success of Mobilize Boston depends on them and their involvement represents an important contribution to gerontological science, which will greatly benefit older adults for many generations to come.
Above content provided by Hebrew Senior Life in partnership with Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.
For advice about your medical care, consult your doctor.
Posted December 2008
How well are Boston seniors aging? Are they heart healthy? Are their bones strong? Are they able to get around on their own, or do they require some assistance? These are just a few of the questions that Institute for Aging Research (IFAR) investigators are asking in one of the most comprehensive studies on aging ever conducted.
In 2006, funded by a five-year National Institute on Aging grant, a team of researchers, headed by principal investigator and IFAR co-director Lewis A. Lipsitz, M.D., embarked on a monumental project called Maintenance of Balance, Independent Living, Intellect and Zest in the Elderly of Boston, or Mobilize Boston. The Mobilize project team is collecting information on community dwelling seniors that will help researchers learn how older adults can maintain good health and remain independent longer.
Four research projects are associated with Mobilize Boston, all of which seek to address the problem of falls, a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in older adults. IFAR researchers head two of the projects. Senior scientist Marian T. Hannan, D.Sc., M.P.H., is principal investigator on a foot disorders study. Despite the clinical impression that they are a common cause of falls in older adults, little population data exist to support this assumption. The goal of Dr. Hannan’s study is to determine the prevalence of foot disorders, the incidence of specific conditions, and how they contribute to falls and disability among older adults.
The other IFAR-based study is led by Dr. Lipsitz and is focused on better understanding how cerebrovascular mechanisms may relate to falls. Collaborators from other institutions head projects that include a study that will examine how pain contributes to falls and functional decline in old age and a study to determine whether sensory stimulation may improve balance.
Mobilize Boston plans to enroll 800 seniors from within a five-mile radius of Hebrew Rehabilitation Center in Roslindale. The multidisciplinary team assembled for Mobilize Boston includes a number of IFAR faculty, including Medical Research Director Dr. Douglas P. Kiel, who heads the epidemiology core, and Richard D. Jones, Sc.D., associate director of Health and Policy Research for IFAR, who is in charge of data management and analysis. Peggy Gagnon, R.N., directs the project, and Marcie Freeman, M.Ed., oversees outreach and recruitment.
In order to reach their recruitment goal, IFAR collaborated with senior statistician Anthony Roman from the University of Massachusetts/Boston’s Center for Survey Research (CSR), who played a critical role in identifying and notifying potential households. He contributed specialized expertise that ensures potential participants represent a cross-section of Boston seniors. In addition, an advisory board made up of local leaders in the area of senior services was assembled to serve as liaisons to the communities where recruitment is taking place. They are familiar with the neighborhoods in which the seniors live, and their advice and guidance are also important to a successful recruitment process.
Once a potential participant has been identified by CSR, IFAR research assistants conduct a home visit. Their evaluations determine whether or not an individual is suited to the study. Visiting a senior at home allows the research assistant to collect information about the environment in which the senior lives and the types of supports he or she has in place.
Once a subject is enrolled, he or she undergoes a thorough clinical evaluation, which will be repeated each year for two years. Judy Coulombre, R.N., and Mark Rivinus, R.N., are the clinicians on the research team who put the participants through their paces in a visit that can last as long as three and a half hours.
The series of assessments begins with standard procedures such as blood tests for cholesterol levels, and measuring weight and height. Then a research assistant tests the participant’s sense of balance. The participant stands on a section of floor that is wired with electronic sensors that measure to what extent he or she sways one way or another while standing still.
Next, the subject’s cerebral blood flow is monitored under varying conditions using transcranial Doppler technology. Research Assistant Ike Iloputaife, BS, coordinates this part of the study.
As the visit progresses, participants undergo a musculoskeletal exam and foot assessment. A walk across a foot pressure mat provides a computer footprint that reveals, for example, a tendency to favor one foot over the other or whether the foot rolls inward or outward with each step. A test called Semmes Weinstein measures foot sensation, which also contributes to balance and mobility.
A study participant’s visit concludes with probably the most challenging event, yet a favorite among the participants – a short physical performance battery. Using a hydraulic leg press machine, the clinicians put the seniors through a series of progressively difficult exercises to determine leg muscle and power strength.
The research team goes out of its way to make sure the participating seniors are comfortable in all situations and that they enjoy the experience. After all, the success of Mobilize Boston depends on them and their involvement represents an important contribution to gerontological science, which will greatly benefit older adults for many generations to come.
Above content provided by Hebrew Senior Life in partnership with Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.
For advice about your medical care, consult your doctor.
Posted December 2008
