Contribution of chronic diseases to the prevalence of disability in basic and instrumental activities of daily living in elderly Brazilians: the National Health Survey (2013)

Abstract

This study's objective was to assess the contribution of selected chronic diseases to the prevalence of disability in elderly Brazilians, based on data from the National Health Survey (PNS 2013). Disability was defined as some degree of difficulty in performing ten activities, considering three levels: (i) without disability; (ii) disabled only in some instrumental activity of daily living (IADL); and (iii) disabled in some basic activity of daily living (BADL). The multinomial additive hazards model was the attribution method used to assess the contribution of each self-reported chronic condition (hypertension, diabetes, arthritis, stroke, depression, heart disease, and lung disease) to the prevalence of disability in this population, stratified by sex and age bracket (60 to 74 years and 75 or older). Study participants included 10,537 elderly Brazilians with a mean age of 70.0 years (SD = 7.9 years) and predominance of women (57.4%). Prevalence rates for disability in at least one IADL and at least one BADL were 14% (95%CI: 12.9; 15.1) and 14.9% (95%CI: 13.8; 16.1), respectively. In general, the contribution of chronic diseases to prevalence of disability was greater in younger elderly (60 to 74 years) and in the group with greatest severity (disabled in BADL), highlighting the relevance of stroke and arthritis in men, and arthritis, hypertension, and diabetes in women. This knowledge can help orient health services to target specific groups, considering age, sex, and current illnesses, aimed at preventing disability in the elderly.

Morbidades e associações com autoavaliação de saúde e capacidade funcional em idosos

“…Moreover, some specific illness was more related with functional dependency, according to the sex. This study confirms the association among female sex and decrease of functional capacity found in the present study 26 . Similarly to the present study, Torres et al found the females older presented more dependency for BADL and IADL, besides other factors like advanced age, have been bedridden in the last two weeks, pain in the last month, lower educational level and restrictions to leave home 27 .…”

Association between health related quality of life (HRQOL) and activity of daily living (ADL) among elderly in an urban setting of Assam, India

“…[91719] In this study, ADL dependence was found to be strongly associated with chronic morbidities which highlight the importance of chronic diseases in causing disabilities in elderly. [59122223] Prevalence of ADL disability was found to be slightly higher among male in this study which is consistent with our previous report from this region. [10]…”

Factors associated with the risk of violence against older adult women: a cross-sectional study

“…Multimorbidity is the occurrence of two or more chronic conditions in the same individual (40) , and it is associated with elements such as loss of functional capacity (39,41) , decreased grip strength (40) , frailty (42) , and cognitive impairment (43) , all of which are also associated with abuse against older adults. In addition, the literature shows that older adults with a high number of comorbidities have a higher chance of suffering violence (44) .…”