Age and gender differences in the prevalence and patterns of multimorbidity in the older population

BMC Geriatrics

Alexandra Prados-Torres⁴  Mercedes Clerencia-Sierra²  Antoni Sicras-Mainar¹  José Manuel Calderón-Meza⁴  Beatriz Poblador-Plou⁴  Antonio Poncel-Falcó³  Amaia Calderón-Larrañaga⁴  José María Abad-Díez⁵ 

[1] Planning Management, Badalona Serveis Assistencials S.A., Badalona, Spain;Socio-Sanitary Assessment Unit, Miguel Servet University Hospital, Zaragoza, Spain;Zaragoza Sector III Primary Care Directorate, Aragon Health Service (SALUD), Zaragoza, Spain;Teaching Unit of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, Aragón Health Sciences Institute (IACS), IIS Aragón, Zaragoza, Spain;EpiChron Research Group on Chronic Diseases, Aragón Health Sciences Institute (IACS), IIS Aragón, Miguel Servet University Hospital, Via Universitas 36, 50017 Zaragoza, Spain

关键词: Frail elderly;    Prevalence;    Primary health care;    Chronic disease;    Comorbidity;    Multimorbidity;   

Others  :  854605
DOI  :  10.1186/1471-2318-14-75

 received in 2013-09-23, accepted in 2014-06-12,  发布年份 2014

【 摘 要 】

Background

The coexistence of several chronic diseases in one same individual, known as multimorbidity, is an important challenge facing health care systems in developed countries. Recent studies have revealed the existence of multimorbidity patterns clustering systematically associated distinct clinical entities. We sought to describe age and gender differences in the prevalence and patterns of multimorbidity in men and women over 65 years.

Methods

Observational retrospective multicentre study based on diagnostic information gathered from electronic medical records of 19 primary care centres in Aragon and Catalonia. Multimorbidity patterns were identified through exploratory factor analysis. We performed a descriptive analysis of previously obtained patterns (i.e. cardiometabolic (CM), mechanical (MEC) and psychogeriatric (PG)) and the diseases included in the patterns stratifying by sex and age group.

Results

67.5% of the aged population suffered two or more chronic diseases. 32.2% of men and 45.3% of women were assigned to at least one specific pattern of multimorbidity, and 4.6% of men and 8% of women presented more than one pattern simultaneously. Among women over 65 years the most frequent pattern was the MEC pattern (33.3%), whereas among men it was the CM pattern (21.2%). While the prevalence of the CM and MEC patterns decreased with age, the PG pattern showed a higher prevalence in the older age groups.

Conclusions

Significant gender differences were observed in the prevalence of multimorbidity patterns, women showing a higher prevalence of the MEC and PG patterns, as well as a higher degree of pattern overlapping, probably due to a higher life expectancy and/or worse health. Future studies on multimorbidity patterns should take into account these differences and, therefore, the study of multimorbidity and its impact should be stratified by age and sex.

【 授权许可】

   
2014 Abad-Díez et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.

【 图 表 】

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