Health Disparities among Adults with Developmental Disabilities, Adults with other Disabilities, and Adults Not Reporting Disability in North Carolina

Abstract

Objectives. The purposes of this study were ( 1) to identify disparities between adults with developmental disabilities and non-disabled adults in health and medical care, and ( 2) to compare this pattern of disparities to the pattern of disparities between adults with other disabilities and adults without disabilities. Methods. The authors compared data on health status, health risk behaviors, chronic health conditions, and utilization of medical care across three groups of adults: No Disability, Disability, and Developmental Disability. Data sources were the 2001 North Carolina Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System and the North Carolina National Core Indicators survey. Results. Adults with developmental disabilities were more likely to lead sedentary lifestyles and seven times as likely to report inadequate emotional support, compared with adults without disabilities. Adults with disabilities and developmental disabilities were significantly more likely to report being in fair or poor health than adults without disabilities. Similar rates of tobacco use and overweight/obesity were reported. Adults with developmental disabilities had a similar or greater risk of having four of five chronic health conditions compared with non-disabled adults. Significant medical care utilization disparities were found for breast and cervical cancer screening as well as for oral health care. Adults with developmental disabilities presented a unique risk for inadequate emotional support and low utilization of breast and cervical cancer screenings. Conclusions. Significant disparities in health and medical care utilization were found for adults with developmental disabilities relative to non-disabled adults. The National Core Indicators protocol offers a sound methodology to gather much-needed surveillance information on the health status, health risk behaviors, and medical care utilization of adults with developmental disabilities. Health promotion efforts must be specifically designed for this population.

Screening for glucose intolerance and development of a lifestyle education programme for prevention of type 2 diabetes in a population with intellectual disabilities: the STOP Diabetes research project

“…After review, 62 articles 50,[81][82][83][84][85][86][87][88][89][90][93][94][95] were included. Four of these articles 90,[102][103][104] reported findings from the same study and a further two articles 109,125 reported findings from the same study, leaving 58 studies (see Table 3) remaining for the final systematic review and meta-analysis.…”

“…Primarily, the included studies were cross-sectional observational (n = 31 81,82,98,[100][101][102]104,106,[109][110][111]114,116,119,121,124,[126][127][128][129][130][131][132][133][134][135]137,139,142,143,145 ). The remaining studies involved retrospective database or medical records data (n = 22 [83][84][85][86][87][88][89]94,95,99,107,113,115,117,118,120,122,123,136,…”

“…Although some studies have found an increase in prevalence of CVD 83 or CVD mortality 279 in individuals with ID, other studies report no difference or reduced risk compared with the general population (see Chapter 2, Results). Lower CVD mortality than in the general population could partially be explained through competing risks, given that individuals with ID have higher mortality from other causes, particularly respiratory illnesses, congenital abnormalities, neurological disorders and accidental injury.…”

Comparison of Healthcare Experiences in Autistic and Non-Autistic Adults: A Cross-Sectional Online Survey Facilitated by an Academic-Community Partnership

“…3 Prior studies have documented that people with disabilities face disparities in health and healthcare as compared to people without disabilities. [4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20] Though some studies assessing healthcare disparities for adults with developmental disabilities have included participants on the autism spectrum, with the exception of one small study using administrative data, 21 they do not report results separately for autistic participants. Most studies also primarily include participants with intellectual disabilities, and may not be generalizable to the full range of individuals now recognized as on the autism spectrum, a majority of whom do not have an intellectual disability.…”

Apoyo Social Y Afrontamiento Del Estrés en Personas Con Discapacidad Intelectual

“…El hecho de que estas personas estén recibiendo menos apoyo social que otras y por ello, se sientan más solas y deprimidas (Havercamp, Scandlin y Roth, 2002), podrían deberse a que diversos grupos asignados a estratos sociales más bajos con grandes desigualdades económicas, relacionales e institucionales asumen que deben esperar menor atención y menor apoyo social (Castro, Campero, Hernández y Langer, 2000). Es un hecho ampliamente aceptado que las personas con discapacidad intelectual sufren exclusión social y su invisibilidad es un factor característico (Pérez-Bueno, 2010).…”