ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Public Health
Sec. Aging and Public Health
Volume 13 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2025.1604019
This article is part of the Research TopicIntertwining Paths: Sensorimotor and Cognitive Dynamics in Neurocognitive AgingView all articles
Current status and influencing factors of motor-cognitive risk syndrome in Chinese rural elderly people: A cross-sectional study
Provisionally accepted
- 1Shandong First Medical University, Tai'an, Shandong, China
- 2Shandong Provincial Hospital, Jinan, Shandong Province, China
- 3Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, China/Shandong, China
- 4School of Nursing, Health Science Centre, Peking University, Beijing, China
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Objective: This study aims to screen for motor-cognitive risk syndrome (MCR) and analyse its influencing factors in rural elderly individuals in China, providing a reference for developing effective early intervention strategies. Methods: A total of 5389 rural elderly people from 33 villages in Xintai City, Shandong Province, China, were investigated using a convenience sampling method. We collected demographic information, subjective cognitive decline, gait speed, sleep quality, cognitive function, chronic pain, self-care ability, fear of falling, loneliness, nutritional status, depression, activities of daily living and social support. In this study, rural elderly individuals were divided into an MCR group and a healthy control group. Chi-square tests, t tests and rank sum tests were used to compare the differences in demographic characteristics between the two groups. Multivariate and linear logistic regression analyses was used to explore the factors influencing MCR in the rural elderly. Results: A total of 3678 rural elderly people were included in this study. The prevalence rate of MCR was 11.66%. The results revealed that chronic pain, age, falls, depression, social support, living conditions, medication types, vision loss, and chronic diseases were influencing factors of MCR in rural elderly individuals (P<0.05). Conclusion: The prevalence rate of MCR in the rural elderly population is 11.66%, although its associated problems are more serious. Therefore, scientific interventions should be developed for rural elderly individuals to improve their motor and cognitive function, prevent dementia, and enhance their health quality of life. Keywords: Motor-cognitive risk syndrome; Elderly; Influencing factors Background Dementia is a clinical diagnosis defined by cognitive symptoms that interfere with the ability to carry out usual activities
Keywords: Motor-cognitive risk syndrome, Elderly, Influencing factors, Cross-sectional study, rural
Received: 01 Apr 2025; Accepted: 11 Aug 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Song, Liu, Yang, Leng, Yang, wang and ju. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Minmin Leng, School of Nursing, Health Science Centre, Peking University, Beijing, China
Lijuan Yang, Shandong Provincial Hospital, Jinan, 250021, Shandong Province, China
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