Comorbidity confers a significantly increased mortality risk even among older adults with an overall high mortality risk due to HF. Clinicians who routinely care for this population should consider the impact of comorbidity on outcomes in their overall management of HF. Such information may also be useful when considering the risks and benefits of aggressive, high-intensity life-prolonging interventions.

To provide quality care to female Veterans, the VA must understand the impact of deployment on women's health. Our findings provide an important picture of the increasing prevalence of musculoskeletal conditions in the female Veteran population and highlight the importance of the VA targeting treatment programs that focus on issues of particular importance to women with musculoskeletal pain.

Objectives-Our objective was to determine the relative importance of geriatric impairments (including those in muscle strength, physical capacity, cognition, vision, hearing and psychological status) and chronic diseases in predicting subsequent functional disability in longitudinal analyses.Design-We analyzed longitudinal data from the Cardiovascular Health Study. Multivariable Cox hazards regression modeling was used to analyze associations between time-dependent predictors and onset of disability in Activities of Daily Living (ADL) and mobility.Setting/Participants-5888 community-dwelling elderly persons were followed for up to seven years. Intervention-N/AMeasurements-Data were collected annually through in-person examinations.Results-ADL disability developed in 15% of participants and mobility disability in 30%. A single multivariable model was developed that included demographics, marital status, body mass index, and number of impairments and diseases. The hazard ratios of having 1, 2, and ≥ 3 geriatric impairments (compared with none) for the outcome of ADL disability were 2.12 (95% CI 1.63-2.75), 4.25 (3.30-5.48), and 7.87 6.10-10.17), respectively, and for having 1, 2, and ≥ 3 chronic diseases were 1.75 (1.41-2.19), 2.45 (1.95-3.07), and 3.26 (2.53-4.19), respectively. Similarly, the hazard ratios of having 1, 2, and ≥ 3 impairments for the outcome of mobility disability were 1.48 (1.27-1.73), 2.08 (1.77-2.45), and 3.70 (3.09-4.42), and for having 1, 2, and ≥ 3 diseases were 2.06 (1.76-2.40), 2.80 (2.36-3.31), and 4.20 (3.44-5.14). Author Contributions: All authors had a role in study concept and design, acquisition of data, analysis and interpretation of data, and preparation of the manuscript. Conclusion-As compared with number of chronic diseases, the number of geriatric impairments was more strongly associated with subsequent ADL disability, and nearly as strongly associated with the subsequent mobility disability. NIH Public Access