Relationship between activity of daily living and asteatosis in the lower legs among elderly residents in long-term care institutions: A cross-sectional study

This cross-sectional observational study investigated the relationship between the level of activities of daily living (ADL) and asteatosis in the lower legs among elderly residents. We enrolled 173 residents from a long-term care health facility and two special nursing homes for elderly persons in the Tokyo metropolitan area and Oshima Island, Japan. The level of ADL was measured by the Barthel Index. The relationship between the Barthel Index total score and the presence of asteatosis in the lower legs diagnosed by a dermatologist was analysed by multivariate logistic regression analysis. Among the residents, 79·2% had asteatosis in their lower legs. An increase of 1 point in the Barthel Index total score was significantly associated with a decreased probability of lower leg asteatosis after adjusting for age, sex and the type of institution (adjusted odds ratio=0·982; 95% confidence interval: 0·966-0·998). A higher level of ADL is associated with a lower probability of having asteatosis in the lower legs among residents in long-term care institutions. Nurses should pay specific attention to residents with limited ADL for initiating preventive care for asteatosis.