Year of grant:
2019

Research Area:
Heilsa - Sjúkrakassagrunnurin Øki 2

Project type:
Ph.d. verkætlan

Project title:
Heilsustøðan hjá sjeyti- og áttati ára gomlum føroyingum úr einum objektivum og subjektivum sjónarhorni

Grant number:
3028

Project manager:
Eina H. Eliasen

Institution/company:
Deildin fyri Arbeiðs- og Almannaheilsu

Other participants:
Maria Skaalum Petersen, Fróði Debess, Pál Weihe, Ian J. Deary og Marin Strøm.

Project period:
Planned: 01.03.2020-28.02.2023
Actual: 01.03.2020-18.04.2024

Total budget:
kr. 1.883.494

Grant from the FRC in DKK:
kr. 1.076.896

Project description:
Original
The health status in Faroese septuagenarians and octogenarians from an objective and subjective perspective.
Based on a multidimensional health assessment, the aim of this project is to gain increased insight into the health status of a genetically homogenous elderly Faroese population and variations within this cohort; to examine health trajectories and outcomes as the cohort ages and to identify determinants of good health and longevity.
Healthy aging has become a subject of crucial importance in our aging world. The number of elderly people in the world will increase significantly over the coming decades, hence, their health and well-being is a growing concern. A key question for the future is if the added years are lived in good health and independency, i.e. living in own homes, or are people living longer experiencing functional and mental decline with need for health care and social care? Mainly, there are two different views of healthy aging: a) healthy aging from the perspective of the older persons themselves and b) objective measurements of healthy aging determined by researchers. The multidimensional concept of healthy aging and the nature of aging makes it necessary to combine information across many different measures of health to assess a healthy aging phenotype.
The proposed PhD study takes advantage of data collected from the Faroese Septuagenarian cohort at baseline in 2007/2008, when participants were 70-74 years and at 10-year follow-up in 2018.
Clarification of health status in the elderly and changes in health components over a 10 years period may improve our knowledge of the health status of the elderly Faroese and the aging process. Thus, this project will contribute with knowledge regarding the aging process in elderly people in general but maybe more importantly also greatly to local knowledge regarding a multidimensional health profile of Faroese elderly.

Final

The overall aim was to conduct a multidimensional assessment of the health of older Faroese adults. The data used come from the Faroese Septuagenarian cohort – a nationwide population-based cohort. Cohort members were aged 70–74 years at baseline and participated in a 10-year follow-up at the age of 80–84 years. Data was collected longitudinally through extensive assessments, including physical examinations, cognitive tests, blood samples, and questionnaires.

Frailty is common among Faroese octogenarians, with a median Frailty Index (FI) score of 0.28. The population can be classified as 21% least frail, 67% moderately frail, and 12% most frail. There is a notable sex difference: females tend to accumulate more health deficits, while males experience more lethal diseases. Octogenarians classified as most frail had a higher mortality risk than those least frail, and women outlived men.

Most cognitive tests showed a decline in cognitive function among Faroese individuals from ages 70–74 to 80–84. People in rural areas, those without professional education, individuals slightly older, smokers, teetotalers, and those with heart disease or abnormal ECG had a steeper decline. Unexpectedly, married/cohabiting individuals showed a steeper decline than those living alone. There were mixed findings regarding sex and myocardial infarction. Excluding those with dementia, age-related cognitive decline was still observed, but there was an indication of a lesser decline, and cognitive performance was slightly better compared to the whole cohort.

In this Faroese cohort, loneliness increased during the pandemic, rising from 7% before the pandemic to 22%. There was also a decline in overall quality of life (QoL) and QoL related to physical health. Surprisingly, there was an improvement in QoL related to social relationships, environment, and psychological health.

Project status:
Liðug

Project output:
Scientific articles, books, thesis etc.
Eliasen, E. H., Weihe, P., Debes, F., Tróndarson, M., & Petersen, M. S. (2024). 10-Year Cognitive Change in the Faroese Septuagenarian Cohort and Impact of Sociodemographic, Lifestyle, and Health Factors. J Aging Health, 8982643241255405. https://doi.org/10.1177/08982643241255405

Eliasen EH, Weihe P, Debes F, Tróndarson M, Petersen MS. 10-Year Follow-up of the Original Faroese Septuagenarian Cohort: Focus on Frailty and Association With All-cause Mortality. Gerontol Geriatr Med. 2023;9:23337214231167980. https://doi.org/10.1177/23337214231167980

Eliasen EH, Weihe P, Petersen MS. The Faroese Septuagenarians cohort: A comparison of well-being before and during the COVID-19 pandemic among older home-dwelling Faroese. Scand J Public Health. 2022;50(1):136-43 https://doi.org/10.1177/14034948211056209

Multidimensional Assessment of Health Among Older Faroese Adults - The Faroese Septuagenarian Cohort Ph.D. thesis defended on April 19, 2024

Other results, such as unpublished articles, patents, computer systems, original models and new procedures
Eliasen EH, Weihe P, Petersen MS. Anthropometric Measurements and all-cause mortality in older adults from the Faroese Septuagenarian cohort. Prepared to be submitted

Publications outside the scientific community, i.e. lectures, periodicals, articles in newspapers, television and radio
Grein í Frøði 2/2020 26. Árg: “Tey eldru og Koronutíðin”

Framløgur:
Framløga: Vísindavøka á ferð í Suðuroy – munnlig framløga: “Heilsustøða & heilsubroytingar yvir eitt 10 ára tíðarskeið hjá eldri føroyingum”
Framløga: ”Tey eldru og Koronutíðin” á evnisdegi hjá FÁG4 (Gerontologi og Geriatri sjúkrarøktarfrøðingar).
Framløga: "Den Færøske Halvfjerdser kohorte: “Hvordan har den gode hensigt at beskytte de ældre fra COVID-19 påvirket deres mentale helbred og velbefindende?” á ráðstevnu hjá NSK, Nordisk Samarbets Komité", sum er felagsskapur fyri pensionistafeløg í Norðurlondum.
Framløga: Framløga ”Tey eldru og Koronutíðin” á granskingardegnum hjá Deplinum fyri Heilsugransking.
Framløga: Stutt framløga um Phd verkætlanina - tiltak hjá Granskingarráðnum í samband við fæið úr Sjúkrakassagrunninum.

Poster framløga: Poster framløga á ráðstevnuni “26th Nordic Congress of Gerontology” við heitinum “Wellbeing before and during the COVID-19 pandemic among older homedwelling faroese” – Mai 2022
Poster framløga: Stutt munnlig framløga og postari á árliga granskingardegnum á Landssjúkrahúsinum 2024 “10-Year Cognitive Change in the Faroese Septuagenarian Cohort and impact of Sociodemographic, Lifestyle, and Health Factors”
Poster framløga: Stutt munnlig framløga og postara framsýning á ráðstevnuni “27th Nordic Congress of Gerontology” í Stockholm Juni 2024 “10-Year Cognitive Change in the Faroese Septuagenarian Cohort and impact of Sociodemographic, Lifestyle, and Health Factors”.

Annað:
Innslag í KvF/ÚF 21.apríl 2024 um úrslit frá PhD verkætlanini
Innslag í KvF/DV um gransking innan eldri í FO og týdning fæið úr Sjúkrakassagrunninum hevur fyri hesa verkætlan.
Innslag í KvF/ÚF 4. November 2021 um greinina “The Faroese Septuagenarians cohort: A comparison of well-being before and during the COVID-19 pandemic among older home-dwelling Faroese”.
Grein á heimasíðuni hjá Deildini fyri Arbeiðs- og Almannaheilsu og á ymiskum føroysum portalum um úrslitið av greinini “The Faroese Septuagenarians cohort: A comparison of well-being before and during the COVID-19 pandemic among older home-dwelling Faroese”.

Storage and access rights to collected data
The data is stored in secure servers at the Department of Research, the National Hospital of the Faroe Islands. The data is not public available but assess to data can be given upon reasonable request via collaboration, provided that correct permissions are on place.

See PURE



<< Back
Administration     Faroese