Background

Question 1

How might you define disability?

Answer 1

Disability is a physical or mental impairment which has substantial and long term adverse effect of a persons ability to carry out activities of daily living.

Question 2

Identify some of the physiological causes of ageing.

Answer 2

DNA damage – effects cell renewal and stem cells prevents cells repair
Free Radical theory of ageing – mitchondria produce free radicals which produce oxidative stress which accumulates with age
Telomeres – tips of chromosomes, shorten with cell division over time leads to cell senescence
Cross-linking theories – tendons, skin and blood vessels lose elascticity

Question 3

1. A ________ is the end part of each chromosome arm. It consists of multiple repeats of a single motif (_________ in humans) which form a DNA loop
   It progressively shortens with each cell ________, and eventually becomes too short to sustain cell _________ – this then leads to cell ________.
2. What is the Hayflick limit?
3. What is meant by senescence?

Answer 3

1. Telomere, TTAGGG, replication, replication, senescence
2. ‘Hayflick Limit’ - No. of times a normal human cell can divide before cell division ceases
3. Cessation of cell replication

Question 4

1. How does a fit older persons response to illness differ to a frail older person?
2. How does multimorbidity differ from frailty?

Answer 4

1. A fit older person can become ill and deteriorate for a short time but return to homeostasis whereas a frail older person deteriorates for longer and never achieves full return to homeostasis.
2. Multimorbid people have multiple health conditions but can be robust and resilient, not necessarily frail.