Homocysteine and mobility in older adults.
OBJECTIVE
To determine the influence of homocysteine on mobility decline in older adults.


METHODS
Prospective cohort.


METHODS
Einstein Aging Study, community-based aging study.


METHODS
Five hundred seventy-four older adults without dementia (mean age 80.2 +/- 5.4, 61% women).


METHODS
Mobility decline defined using gait velocity measurements at baseline and annual follow-up visits. Linear mixed effects models were used to adjust for age, sex, education, and other potential confounders.


RESULTS
Higher homocysteine levels were associated with slower gait velocity at baseline. Adjusted for age, sex, and education, a one-unit increase in baseline log homocysteine levels was associated with a 2.95-cm/s faster mobility decline per year (P=.01) over a median follow-up of 1.4 years. The 140 subjects in the highest quartile of homocysteine had a faster rate of mobility decline (1.75 cm/s per year faster, P=.01) than the 434 subjects in the lowest three quartiles of homocysteine (<or=15 micromol/L). The association between homocysteine and mobility decline remained robust even after adjusting for multiple confounders and accounting for the presence of clinical gait abnormalities.


CONCLUSIONS
Higher homocysteine levels are associated with greater risk of mobility decline in community-residing older adults.
Rolita
Lydia
L
Department of General Internal Medicine, New York University School of Medicine, New York, New York 10461, USA.
Holtzer
Roee
R
Wang
Cuiling
C
Lipton
Richard B
RB
Derby
Carol A
CA
Verghese
Joe
J
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D005260:Female; D005684:Gait; D006710:Homocysteine / Q000097:blood*; D006801:Humans; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D051346:Mobility Limitation; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors
D015415:Biomarkers; D006710:Homocysteine