title: An evaluation of transition in functional states among the elderly in Beijing, China.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The goal of the present study was to describe the changes in activities of daily living (ADL) of community-dwelling Beijing elderly people (n=3,257), observed for 8 years, and to identify the demographic characteristic that predict the functional change.
  
  
  METHODS
  Two sets of interview data (1992 and 2000) were used to evaluate changes among the elderly in reports of limitation in ADL management.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The prevalence of disability increased over 8 years both in IADL and BADL disability. The patterns of ADLs change were bi-directional. A large proportion (74.7%) of the elderly were found to remain active in their functional states, 20.4% of the elderly declined, 3.4% of the elderly remained disabled, and 1.5% showed improvement in functional states. The transition rates from non-disability and disability states to various functional states showed different characteristic, a high disability rate accompanied a high mortality rate. The demographic factors that affected the level of disability among different kinds of population manifested similar trends.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Age was the most significant predictor for functional limitations. In addition, demographic variables played an important role in estimating functional outcomes. It is recommended that the demarcation factor for the evaluation of ADLs should be 75 years of age.
authors: Beijing Geriatric Clinical and Research Center, Beijing, China.
authors: Zhe
authors: Z
authors: Tang
authors: Jingmei
authors: J
authors: Jiang
authors: Makoto
authors: M
authors: Futatsuka