Aging in Puerto Rico: A Comparison of Health Status Among Island Puerto Rican and Mainland U.S. Older Adults

Abstract

Objective To characterize the health status of older island Puerto Ricans, a segment of the U.S. population that has been largely overlooked in aging research. Method Data from the 2002 Puerto Rican Elderly Health Conditions Project and the 2002 Health and Retirement Study are used to examine differences in disease, disability, and self-rated health among island Puerto Ricans and the mainland U.S.-born older adult population. Differences are further examined by gender. Results Island Puerto Ricans were less likely to have heart disease, stroke, lung disease, cancer, activities of daily living (ADL) limitations, and poor self-rated health, but more likely to have hypertension and diabetes. Island Puerto Rican women had worse health relative to island Puerto Rican men. Discussion Recent challenges in the funding and provision of health care in Puerto Rico are worrisome given the large number of aging island adults, many of whom have hypertension and diabetes, two conditions that require long-term medical care.

Current State of Diabetes Mellitus Prevalence, Awareness, Treatment, and Control in Latin America: Challenges and Innovative Solutions to Improve Health Outcomes Across the Continent

“…Studies included in our review consistently reported an increased prevalence of diabetes with age. Diabetes care challenges specific to this age group include risk of obesity or undernutrition [ 42 , 56 ], increased risk for disability [ 57 ], economic barriers to appropriate access to health care [ 42 ], disruption in funding of health insurance [ 275 ], disparate completion of diabetes care guidelines based on health insurance coverage [ 276 ], inequalities in access to and utilization of health care services [ 277 – 279 ], complex medical care needs and frailty [ 280 ], cultural beliefs, mental health, and lack of family or social support [ 281 ], among others. Prevention of diabetes and its complications and reliable continuity of care and social support [ 282 ] need to be especially tailored for this population across the region.…”

Epidemiology of Sarcoidosis in Puerto Rico: A Population-Based Study From 2016 to 2018

“…represent the oldest reported. This finding is strongly influenced by the high proportion of elderly patients living in Puerto Rico (24). The results suggest that sarcoidosis in Puerto Rico is concentrated at a middle to advanced age.…”

Will 'Deaths of Despair' among Whites Change How We Talk about Racial/Ethnic Health Disparities?

“…The Hispanic paradox has been heavily criticized since it entirely discounts the health outcomes where Hispanics perform worse than Whites (eg hypertension and diabetes) 9 while also disregarding the within-group heterogeneity masked by the label of Hispanic ethnicity, failing to discern any differences between Mexicans, Puerto Ricans, Central Americans, and Cubans. [10][11][12] The Hispanic paradox remains a problematic term since it misrepresents Hispanics as a comparatively healthy group when it is only a paradox because Whites are not outperforming Hispanics on all measures of health. The term positions Whites as the gold standard in the measuring and reporting of health outcomes.…”