The objective of this study was to evaluate factors associated with functional capacity among the elderly attended in a public health program in Belém in the State of Pará. A sectional study was conducted with 259 elderly people attended in the Hiperdia/SUS program in the period from March to July 2010. The elderly were assessed using the modified physical performance test duly validated in Brazil. Pearson's Chi-square Test, in addition to variance analysis and logistic regression were used for the analysis. The elderly were 68.3 years on average (SD ± 6.2) and 71% were female. After adjustments for conflicting variables, it was seen that there were greater chances of worse performance on the test among women, the older and less educated individuals, and those complaining of knee pain and prior diagnosis of cataracts and fair/bad self-assessment of health. Functional capacity is an important health indicator to identify early risks of incapacity and requiring a periodic evaluation, in order to seek care strategies for maintaining the independence of the elderly.
The elderly; Gerontology; Public health; Nursing
