Effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of a proactive, goal-oriented, integrated care model in general practice for older people. A cluster randomised controlled trial: Integrated Systematic Care for older People--the ISCOPE study.

BACKGROUND: older people often experience complex problems. Because of multiple problems, care for older people in general practice needs to shift from a 'problem-based, disease-oriented' care aiming at improvement of outcomes per disease to a 'goal-oriented care', aiming at improvement of functioning and personal quality of life, integrating all healthcare providers. Feasibility and cost-effectiveness of this proactive and integrated way of working are not yet established. DESIGN: cluster randomised trial. PARTICIPANTS: all persons aged ≥75 in 59 general practices (30 intervention, 29 control), with a combination of problems, as identified with a structured postal questionnaire with 21 questions on four health domains. INTERVENTION: for participants with problems on ≥3 domains, general practitioners (GPs) made an integrated care plan using a functional geriatric approach. Control practices: care as usual. OUTCOME MEASURES: (i) quality of life (QoL), (ii) activities of daily living, (iii) satisfaction with delivered health care and (iv) cost-effectiveness of the intervention at 1-year follow-up. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Netherlands trial register, NTR1946. RESULTS: of the 11,476 registered eligible older persons, 7,285 (63%) participated in the screening. One thousand nine hundred and twenty-one (26%) had problems on ≥3 health domains. For 225 randomly chosen persons, a care plan was made. No beneficial effects were found on QoL, patients' functioning or healthcare use/costs. GPs experienced better overview of the care and stability, e.g. less unexpected demands, in the care. CONCLUSIONS: GPs prefer proactive integrated care. 'Horizontal' care using care plans for older people with complex problems can be a valuable tool in general practice. However, no direct beneficial effect was found for older persons.

Self-Reported Hindering Health Complaints of Community-Dwelling Older Persons: A Cross-Sectional Study.

PURPOSE: Proactive care for community-dwelling older persons targeting self-reported hindering health complaints might prevent a decline in function. We investigated the spectrum of self-reported hindering complaints of community-dwelling older persons, the association with functional outcomes, and help-seeking behavior for these complaints. METHODS: Within the ISCOPE trial, participants (aged ≥75 years) received the ISCOPE screening questionnaire, including the open-ended question "At the moment, which health complaints limit you the most in your day-to-day life?". After coding the answers with the ICPC-1-NL, we examined the prevalence and the association between the number and type of complaints and functional outcomes (Groningen Activities Restriction Scale, quality of life measured on Cantril's Ladder, Mini-Mental State Examination, Geriatric Depression Scale-15, and De Jong Gierveld Loneliness Scale). Electronic patient registers were searched for the most reported complaints. RESULTS: 7285 participants (median age: 81.0 years [IQR 77.8-85.3], 38.6% males) reported 13,524 hindering complaints (median 1, range 0-18); 32.7% reported no complaints. Participants mostly reported problems with walking/standing (22.1%), pain (20.8%) or weakness/tiredness (8.5%). These complaints were mentioned in the electronic patient registers in 28.3%, 91.3% and 55.5%, respectively. Higher numbers of hindering complaints were related to poorer scores on the number of domains with problems, Cantril's Ladder for quality of life, Groningen Activities Restriction Scale, Geriatric Depression Scale, and De Jong Gierveld Loneliness Scale. Self-reported weakness, problems with walking/standing, visual limitations, cognitive problems, dyspnea and back complaints were associated with poorer scores on the number of domains with problems, Groningen Activities Restriction Scale, MMSE or Geriatric Depression Scale. CONCLUSION: One third of the participants reported no hindering complaints. Problems with walking/standing, pain, and weakness/tiredness were most reported, but not always found in electronic patient registers. A higher number of, and specific self-reported hindering complaints, were associated with poorer scores on functional outcomes. It may be helpful for general practitioners to ask about these complaints and their influence on daily life.

Consequences of interaction of functional, somatic, mental and social problems in community-dwelling older people.

UNLABELLED: This study explores the combination of four common health problems in older people and whether problems on four domains result in an additional effect on indicators of poor health. For this purpose, a total of 2681 participants (32% male, mean age 82 years) of the Integrated Systematic Care for Older People (ISCOPE) study were screened on the presence of health problems on four domains (functional, somatic, mental, social) with the postal ISCOPE questionnaire. Extensive interview data on health indicators were obtained at baseline and at 12-months follow-up, including disability (Groningen Activities Restriction Scale, GARS), cognitive function (Mini-Mental State Examination, MMSE), depressive symptoms (Geriatric Depression Scale-15, GDS), loneliness (loneliness scale of De Jong Gierveld), and health-related quality of life (EQ-5D). General practitioner (GP) contact time (min/year) was estimated via GP electronic medical records. Of the study population, 9% had no health problems according to the screening, 8% had problems on one domain, 27% on two, 38% on three and 18% on four domains. At baseline, the number of health domains with problems was associated with poorer scores on the GARS, the MMSE, the GDS-15, the loneliness scale, the EQ-5D and with more GP contact time (p <0.001). Problems on all four domains had an additional negative effect on these health indicators (all pinteraction <0.001). At follow-up, an increased number of domains with problems was associated with an increased decline in health indicators (all p<0.001) and with an additional negative effect on GP contact time of the presence of problems on all four domains (pinteraction <0.001). We conclude that combinations of functional, somatic, mental and social problems are associated with poor health indicators in community-dwelling older people. Since problems on four domains have an additional effect on health, individuals with combined functional, somatic, mental and social problems could benefit from integrated care. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Netherlands Trial Register: NTR1946.

Comparison of quadriceps strength and handgrip strength in their association with health outcomes in older adults in primary care.

Sarcopenia is thought to play a major role in the functional impairment that occurs with old age. In clinical practice, sarcopenia is often determined by measuring handgrip strength. Here, we compared the lower limb quadriceps strength to the handgrip strength in their association with health outcomes in older adults in primary care. Our study population consisted of older adults (n = 764, 68.2% women, median age 83) that participated in the Integrated Systemic Care for Older People (ISCOPE) study. Participants were visited at baseline to measure quadriceps strength and handgrip strength. Data on health outcomes were obtained at baseline and after 12 months (including life satisfaction, disability in daily living, GP contact-time and hospitalization). Quadriceps strength and handgrip strength showed a weak association (ß = 0.42 [95% CI 0.33-0.50]; R (2) = 0.17). Quadriceps strength and handgrip strength were independently associated with health outcomes at baseline, including quality of life, disability in daily living, GP contact-time, hospitalization, and gait speed. Combined weakness of the quadriceps and handgrip distinguished a most vulnerable subpopulation that presented with the poorest health outcomes. At follow-up, handgrip strength showed an association with quality of life (ß = 0.05; P = 0.002) and disability in daily living (ß = -0.5; P = 0.004). Quadriceps weakness did not further contribute to the prediction of the measured health outcomes. We conclude that quadriceps strength is only moderately associated with handgrip strength in an older population and that the combination of quadriceps strength and handgrip strength measurements may aid in the identification of older adults in primary care with the poorest health outcomes. In the prediction of poor health outcomes, quadriceps strength measurements do not show an added value to the handgrip strength.

Disability transitions in the oldest old in the general population. The Leiden 85-plus study.

Transitions between disability states in older people occur frequently. This study investigated predictors of disability transitions in the oldest old and was performed in the Leiden 85-plus study, a population-based prospective cohort study among 597 participants aged 85 years. At baseline (age 85 years), data on sociodemographic characteristics and chronic diseases were obtained. Disabilities in basic activities of daily living (BADL) and instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) were measured annually for 5 years with the Groningen Activities Restriction Scale (GARS). Mortality data were obtained. A statistical multi-state model was used to assess the risks of transitions between no disabilities, IADL disability, BADL disability, and death. At baseline, 299 participants (50.0 %) were disabled in IADL only, and 155 participants (26.0 %) were disabled in both BADL and IADL. During 5-year follow-up, 374 participants (62.6 %) made >1 transition between disability states, mostly deterioration in disability. Males had a lower risk of deterioration [hazard ratio (HR), 0.75 (95 % CI, 0.58-0.96)] compared to females. No gender differences were observed for improvement [HR, 0.64 (95 % CI, 0.37-1.11)]. Participants with depressive symptoms were less likely to improve [HR, 0.50 (95 % CI, 0.28-0.87)]. Participants with depressive symptoms [HR, 1.46 (95 % CI, 1.12-1.91)], >1 chronic disease [HR, 1.60 (95 % CI, 1.27-2.01)], and with cognitive impairment [HR, 1.60 (95 % CI, 1.20-2.13)] had the highest risk of deteriorating. Disability is a dynamic process in the oldest old. Deterioration is more common than improvement. Older men are less likely to deteriorate than women. The presence of depressive symptoms, chronic disease, and cognitive impairment predicts deterioration.

Predictive value of a profile of routine blood measurements on mortality in older persons in the general population: the Leiden 85-plus Study.

BACKGROUND: Various questionnaires and performance tests predict mortality in older people. However, most are heterogeneous, laborious and a validated consensus index is not available yet. Since most older people are regularly monitored by laboratory tests, we compared the predictive value of a profile of seven routine laboratory measurements on mortality in older persons in the general population with other predictors of mortality; gait speed and disability in instrumental activities of daily living (IADL). METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Within the Leiden 85-plus Study, a prospective population-based study, we followed 562 participants aged 85 years for mortality over five years. At baseline (age 85 years) high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, albumin, alanine transaminase, hemoglobin, creatinin clearance, C-reactive protein and homocysteine were measured. Participants were stratified based on their number of laboratory abnormalities (0, 1, 2-4 and 5-7). The predictive capacity was compared with gait speed (6-meter walking test) and disability in IADL (Groningen Activity Restriction Scale) by C-statistics. At baseline, 418 (74%) 85-year old participants had at least one laboratory abnormality. All cause mortality risk increased with increasing number of laboratory abnormalities to a hazard ratio of 5.64 [95% CI 3.49-9.12] for those with 5-7 laboratory abnormalities (p<0.001) compared to those without abnormalities. The c-statistic was 0.66 [95% CI 0.59-0.69], similar to that of gait speed and disability in IADL. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: In the general population of oldest old, the number of abnormalities in seven routine laboratory measurements predicts five-year mortality as accurately as gait speed and IADL disability.