Sedentary Time and Disability in Older Adults: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

This systematic review and meta-analysis examined the relationship between sedentary behavior (SB) and disability in older adults. A search was conducted using PubMed, Web of Science, and Sport Discus databases to identify eligible studies. Of the 405 studies identified, only 4 studies met our predefined criteria to be included in this metaanalysis. In these studies, participants who reported having a disability had higher levels of SB (effect size: 0.38, 95% IC: 0.14-0.62, p<0. 002) than those without disability. Older adults with disabilities seem to engage in higher levels of SB (mean 5.8 to 10.3 hours/day) when compared with older adults without disability (mean of 4.6 to 9.7 hours/ day). The findings of this review and meta-analysis suggest that there is an association between SB and disability. Our findings, however, are limited to cross-sectional studies and thus direction of this relationship is not clear based on studies to date.