Association between functional ability, chronic diseases and lifestyle risk factors in older community dwelling adults: protocol for a prospective observational Chinese cohort study

Background The increasing proportion of the ageing population has become a significant focus for healthcare and social services in many countries worldwide, including China. Impaired physical fitness or the presence of chronic diseases may decrease functional ability and health related quality of life for older adults. The aim of the study is to investigate the association between functional abilities, including motor and cognitive function, with lifestyle risk factors, including activities of daily living (ADL), physical activity falls, frailty, and chronic diseases in older adults living in Guangzhou, China. Methods A prospective observational cohort study will be conducted. Older adults aged 60 years and over living in urban Guangzhou, China will be eligible for inclusion. This study will be conducted in a community health service centre in Guangzhou. Inclusion criteria are that older adults can independently ambulate short distances indoors with or without a walking aid and can provide written informed consent. The outcomes are functional ability measured using, i Timed Up and Go test (TUGT), gait speed, handgrip strength and Functional Reach Test (FRT), cognition measured using the Mini-Cog, ADL measured with the Lawton Instrumental Activities of Daily Living Scale (Lawton IADL), HR-QoL measured using the European Quality of Life 5 Dimensions 3 Level Version (EQ5D3L), physical activity, falls history, lifestyle risk factors, anthropometric data, presence of chronic diseases measured by standardized blood tests, and blood pressure. Data collection will be performed by two senior physiotherapists and nurses working in the community centre. Trial registration Ethical approval (II2023-155-02) for this study was obtained from the Health Research Ethics Committee of the Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China. Chinese Clinical Trial Registry Centre ChiCTR2300076095.