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Among older people, independence and quality of life are closely tied to being able to walk and drive a car. In this study, more than 600 people aged 70 and older were followed for approximately 4 years to identify risk factors for and precipitants of long-term (>6 months) disability in walking a quarter mile or driving a car.
After a median follow-up of 44 months, 56% of elders able to walk at baseline developed a long-term walking disability; after a median of 54 months, 53% developed a long-term driving disability. In a multivariate analysis, risk factors associated with development of a disability included older age, female sex, weight loss, cognitive impairment, restricted activity, and hospitalization. Of note, the risk for developing …