Nadine Röhrig1, Ralf Strobl2, Martin Müller3, Siegfried Perz4, Stefan Kääb5, Eimo Martens5, Annette Peters6, Birgit Linkohr6, Eva Grill3. 1. Institute for Medical Information Processing, Biometrics and Epidemiology, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Marchioninistraße 17, 81377 Munich, Germany. 2. Institute for Medical Information Processing, Biometrics and Epidemiology, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Marchioninistraße 17, 81377 Munich, Germany. Electronic address: ralf.strobl@med.uni-muenchen.de. 3. Institute for Medical Information Processing, Biometrics and Epidemiology, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Marchioninistraße 17, 81377 Munich, Germany; German Center for Vertigo and Balance Disorders, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität MÃ1/4nchen, Marchioninistraβe 15, 81377 Munich, Germany. 4. Institute for Biological and Medical Imaging, Helmholtz-Zentrum München, Ingolstädter Landstr. 1, 85764 Neuherberg, Germany. 5. Department of Medicine I, Klinikum Grosshadern, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Marchioninistraβe 15, 81377 Munich, Germany. 6. Institute of Epidemiology II, Helmholtz-Zentrum München, Ingolstädter Landstr. 1, 85764 Neuherberg, Germany.
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: To examine the association between electrocardiographic (ECG) findings and disability status in older adults. STUDY DESIGN AND SETTING: KORA-Age, a population-based cross-sectional study of the MONICA/KORA project, a randomized sample from Southern Germany of people aged 65 years or older. RESULTS: A total of 534 (51.5%) of 1,037 participants were characterized as disabled. Disabled participants were on average 4.5 years older than those who were not disabled. Crude associations of left-axis deviation, ventricular conduction defects, atrial fibrillation, and QT prolongation with disability status were significant (P < 0.05). In models controlled for age and sex, these effects remained constant except for QT prolongation. In the models adjusted for the minimal sufficient adjustment set (consisting of the variables sex, physical activity, age, obesity, diabetes, education, heart diseases, income, lung diseases, and stroke) identified by a directed acyclic graph (DAG), no significant association could be shown. CONCLUSION: Associations between specific ECG findings and disability were found in unadjusted analysis and logistic models adjusted for age and sex. However, when adjusting for other possible confounders identified by the DAG, all these associations were no longer significant. It is important to adequately identify confounding in such settings.
OBJECTIVES: To examine the association between electrocardiographic (ECG) findings and disability status in older adults. STUDY DESIGN AND SETTING: KORA-Age, a population-based cross-sectional study of the MONICA/KORA project, a randomized sample from Southern Germany of people aged 65 years or older. RESULTS: A total of 534 (51.5%) of 1,037 participants were characterized as disabled. Disabled participants were on average 4.5 years older than those who were not disabled. Crude associations of left-axis deviation, ventricular conduction defects, atrial fibrillation, and QT prolongation with disability status were significant (P < 0.05). In models controlled for age and sex, these effects remained constant except for QT prolongation. In the models adjusted for the minimal sufficient adjustment set (consisting of the variables sex, physical activity, age, obesity, diabetes, education, heart diseases, income, lung diseases, and stroke) identified by a directed acyclic graph (DAG), no significant association could be shown. CONCLUSION: Associations between specific ECG findings and disability were found in unadjusted analysis and logistic models adjusted for age and sex. However, when adjusting for other possible confounders identified by the DAG, all these associations were no longer significant. It is important to adequately identify confounding in such settings.
Authors: Neamin M Berhe; Sarah Van de Velde; Fatemeh Rabiee-Khan; Claudia van der Heijde; Peter Vonk; Veerle Buffel; Edwin Wouters; Guido Van Hal Journal: BMC Public Health Date: 2022-06-07 Impact factor: 4.135
Authors: Julia Six-Merker; Christa Meisinger; Carolin Jourdan; Margit Heier; Hans Hauner; Annette Peters; Jakob Linseisen Journal: PLoS One Date: 2016-05-18 Impact factor: 3.240