Table 1. Characteristics of study participants.
| Mean and SD unless stated otherwise | Men (n=349) | Women (n=280) |
|---|---|---|
| Age in (years) | 67.8 (2.5) | 68.1 (2.5) |
| Weight in (kg)a | 81.2 (1.2) | 70.5 (1.2) |
| Height in (cm) | 174.1 (6.6) | 160.9 (6.0) |
| N(%) Current manual social class (IIIM-V) b | 202 (57.9) | 169 (60.4) |
| N(%) Current smoker | 40 (11.5) | 25 (9.0) |
| N(%) Men >21/Women >14 units alcohol per week | 66 (18.9) | 13 (4.6) |
| N(%) Walking speed: very slow/stroll at easy pace | 91 (26.1) | 69 (24.6) |
| N(%) Walking speed: normal | 146 (41.8) | 129 (46.1) |
| N(%) Walking speed: fairly brisk/fast | 112 (32.1) | 82 (23.5) |
| SF-36 Physical Functioning score (median [IQR]c) | 90 (85,95) | 85 (65,95) |
| Individual SF-36 physical functioning (PF) items | ||
| N (%) limited a lot by health in performance of; | ||
| Vigorous activities | 94 (26.9) | 119 (42.5) |
| Moderate activities | 12 (3.4) | 16 (5.7) |
| Lifting/carrying groceries | 15 (4.3) | 33 (11.8) |
| Climbing several flights of stairs | 18 (5.2) | 45 (16.1) |
| Climbing one flight of stairs | 8 (2.3) | 7 (2.5) |
| Bending, kneeling, stooping | 31 (8.9) | 46 (16.4) |
| Walking >1 mile | 27 (7.7) | 41 (14.6) |
| Walking half a mile | 15 (4.3) | 23 (8.2) |
| Walking 100 yards | 9 (2.6) | 4 (1.4) |
| Bathing/dressing oneself | 7 (2.0) | 2 (0.7) |
| At least one of the ten PF scale items | 113 (32.4) | 129 (46.1) |
| Objective measurements of physical performance | ||
| Grip strength (kg) | 44.3 (7.6) | 26.0 (5.8) |
| TUG (secs)d | 10.6 (1.9) | 11.2 (2.4) |
| 3m walk (secs)d | 3.3 (0.5) | 3.5 (0.7) |
| Chair rises (secs)a | 15.2 (1.2) | 16.7 (1.3) |
| Quadriceps peak torque (Nm)e | 95.1 (19.1) | 68.6 (16.4) |
| N(%) achieving maximal balance time of 30 secondsf | 156 (46.4) | 73 (26.8) |
a
Geometric mean and SD
b
IIIM-V denotes classes three (manual) to five of the 1990 OPCS Standard Occupational Classification scheme for occupation and social class. Social class was identified on the basis of own current or most recent full-time occupation for men and never-married women, but on the basis of the husband’s occupation for ever-married women.
c
Inter-quartile range
d
Excludes 4 men and 4 women who completed the TUG and 3m walk with the assistance of a walking aid
e
Measurement of quadriceps strength was only introduced part way through the West Herts phase of the Hertfordshire Cohort Study and therefore data were only available for 125 men and 193 women
f
Excludes 13 men and 8 women who did not participate in the balance test