title: Patterns and predictors of recovery from exhaustion in older adults: the cardiovascular health study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To estimate the likelihood of, and factors associated with, recovery from exhaustion in older adults.
  
  
  METHODS
  Secondary analysis of a cohort study.
  
  
  METHODS
  Six annual examinations in four U.S. communities.
  
  
  METHODS
  Four thousand five hundred eighty-four men and women aged 69 and older.
  
  
  METHODS
  Exhaustion was considered present when a participant responded "a moderate amount" or "most of the time" to either of two questions: "How often have you had a hard time getting going?" and "How often does everything seem an effort?"
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of the 964 participants who originally reported exhaustion, 634 (65.8%) were exhaustion free at least once during follow-up. When data from all time points were considered, 48% of those who reported exhaustion were exhaustion free the following year. After adjustment for age, sex, race, education, and marital status, 1-year recovery was less likely in individuals with worse self-rated health and in those who were taking six or more medications or were obese, depressed, or had musculoskeletal pain or history of stroke. In proportional hazards models, the following risk factors were associated with more persistent exhaustion over 5 years: poor self-rated health, six or more medications, obesity, and depression. Recovery was not less likely in participants with a history of cancer or heart disease.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Exhaustion is common in old age but is dynamic, even in those with a history of cancer and congestive heart failure. Recovery is especially likely in seniors who have a positive perception of their overall health, take few medications, and are not obese or depressed. These findings support the notion that resiliency is associated with physical and psychological well-being.
authors.affiliation: Center for the Study of Aging and Human Development, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina, USA. heather.whitson@duke.edu
authors.forename: Heather E
authors.initials: HE
authors.lastname: Whitson
authors.forename: Stephen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Thielke
authors.forename: Paula
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Diehr
authors.forename: Ann M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: O'Hare
authors.forename: Paulo H M
authors.initials: PH
authors.lastname: Chaves
authors.forename: Neil A
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Zakai
authors.forename: Alice
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Arnold
authors.forename: Sarwat
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Chaudhry
authors.forename: Diane
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Ives
authors.forename: Anne B
authors.initials: AB
authors.lastname: Newman
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology*; D002320:Cardiovascular Physiological Phenomena; D005080:Exercise Test; D017079:Exercise Tolerance / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D015577:Geriatric Assessment / Q000379:methods*; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D020127:Recovery of Function / Q000502:physiology*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D014481:United States