Cardiovascular

Demographic, Environmental and Clinical Factors Associated with Life-Space Mobility Among Community-Dwelling Older Adults with Cardiovascular Disease: Findings from the International Mobility in Aging Study (IMIAS).

Aburub A, Guerra R, et al. • Clinical interventions in aging • 2026

TL;DR

Life-space mobility in older adults with cardiovascular disease was significantly associated with multiple demographic factors (study site, age, sex, education) and clinical factors (quality of life, depressive symptoms, visual impairment, and physical performance), highlighting the multidimensional nature of mobility restriction in this population.

Key Findings

Results

Approximately 35% of community-dwelling older adults with cardiovascular disease exhibited restricted life-space mobility.

Data from 429 participants across five international sites in the International Mobility in Aging Study (IMIAS) were included.
Mean age of participants was 69.5 ± 2.8 years.
Life-space mobility was assessed using the Life-Space Assessment (LSA).
Restricted LSM was found in 35% of the study sample.

Results

Study site, age, sex, and educational level were all significantly associated with life-space mobility as demographic factors.

Study site was associated with LSM (p = 0.000002).
Age was significantly associated with LSM (p = 0.001).
Sex was significantly associated with LSM (p = 0.005).
Educational level was significantly associated with LSM (p = 0.001).
Multivariable linear regression was used to identify independent predictors of LSM.

Results

Lower quality of life, depressive symptoms, visual impairment, and reduced physical performance were independently associated with restricted life-space mobility.

Lower quality of life was associated with LSM (p = 0.004).
Depressive symptoms were associated with LSM (p = 0.0001).
Visual impairment was associated with LSM (p = 0.003).
Reduced physical performance was the most strongly associated clinical factor (p = 0.000004).
These associations were identified using multivariable linear regression controlling for other factors.

Results

Group comparisons revealed significant differences between individuals with restricted versus unrestricted life-space mobility across multiple sociodemographic and clinical variables.

Significant differences were found in study site, sex, education, type of work, and income sufficiency between the two groups.
Most clinical variables also differed significantly between restricted and unrestricted mobility groups.
Chi-square and t-tests were used to examine differences between groups.
The findings underscore the multidimensional nature of life-space mobility restriction in older adults with CVD.

Conclusions

Life-space mobility may serve as a useful measure for identifying older adults with cardiovascular disease who are at risk of mobility restriction.

The study highlights that LSM is associated with several demographic and clinical factors simultaneously.
The authors suggest LSM assessment could help identify at-risk individuals in clinical settings.
Evidence on factors associated with LSM in the CVD population was noted as previously limited.
Restricted LSM was linked to increased disease burden, reduced autonomy, and diminished quality of life.

What This Means

This research examined what factors are linked to how freely older adults with heart disease can move around in their communities — a concept called 'life-space mobility.' Using data from 429 older adults (average age about 70) across five international locations, the researchers found that 35% of participants had restricted life-space mobility, meaning they had difficulty moving beyond their immediate home environment. Both demographic characteristics (like where they lived, their age, sex, and education level) and health-related factors (like depression, poor vision, lower quality of life, and reduced physical performance) were independently linked to how restricted their mobility was. The study found that people with restricted mobility differed significantly from those without restrictions not only in clinical health measures but also in social and economic factors such as type of work and whether their income was sufficient. Physical performance was the most strongly associated clinical factor, while depressive symptoms also played a notable role. These findings suggest that mobility limitation in older adults with heart disease is a complex, multi-layered problem that cannot be explained by any single factor alone. This research suggests that measuring life-space mobility could be a practical tool in healthcare settings to identify older adults with cardiovascular disease who may be at risk of becoming more isolated or losing independence. By recognizing the range of factors — from where someone lives to whether they experience depression or vision problems — healthcare providers and policymakers could potentially develop more targeted and comprehensive approaches to supporting mobility and quality of life in this population.

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Citation

Aburub A, Guerra R, Hadoush H, Al-Sharman A, Hijazi H, Khalil H, et al.. (2026). Demographic, Environmental and Clinical Factors Associated with Life-Space Mobility Among Community-Dwelling Older Adults with Cardiovascular Disease: Findings from the International Mobility in Aging Study (IMIAS).. Clinical interventions in aging. https://doi.org/10.2147/CIA.S616966

Key Findings

What This Means

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