Functional performance assessed by the Timed Up and Go test and associated factors in climacteric women in Primary Health Care

Abstract

Introduction: The assessment of functionality during the climacteric period is relevant, as physiological changes associated with clinical and psychosocial factors may compromise mobility and anticipate functional limitations before old age. Objective: To investigate the association between functional performance and sociodemographic, clinical, and psychosocial factors in climacteric women assisted in Primary Health Care (PHC). Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted with 760 climacteric women registered in Family Health Strategy (FHS) units in Montes Claros, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Functional performance was assessed using the Timed Up and Go (TUG) test, with a cutoff of ≥12 seconds indicating impaired performance. Explanatory variables included sociodemographic, gynecological, clinical, and psychosocial characteristics. Poisson regression with robust variance was applied. Results: The prevalence of impaired functional performance was 28.4%. Significant associations included overweight/obesity (PR = 1.43; 95%CI: 1.08–1.89), history of falls (PR = 1.13; 95%CI: 1.01–1.71), and negative self-rated health (fair: PR = 1.59; 95%CI: 1.00–2.54; poor/very poor: PR = 1.76; 95%CI: 1.09–2.85). Women with severe menopausal symptoms showed a lower prevalence of impaired performance (PR = 0.60; 95%CI: 0.44–0.82). Conclusion: Functional impairment was frequent among climacteric women and was more prevalent in those with excess weight, history of falls, and negative health perception. The inverse association between severe menopausal symptoms and impaired functional performance highlights the need to investigate the role of health interventions in this context. The findings reinforce the importance of early monitoring of functionality in PHC as a preventive strategy.