Multimorbidity associated with functional independence among community-dwelling older people: a cross-sectional study in Southern China

Health and Quality of Life Outcomes

Research

Ying-Yu Lin¹  Sheng-Chao Zhang¹  Xu-Jia Chen²  Wei-Quan Lin³  Ling-Ling Huang⁴  Xiao-Xiao Wang⁴  Pei-Xi Wang⁵ 

[1] Baoan Central Hospital of Shenzhen, 518102, Shenzhen, China;Community health service management center, Luohu hospital group, 518007, Shenzhen, China;Guangzhou Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 510440, Guangzhou, China;Institute of Public Health, School of Nursing, Henan University, 475004, Kaifeng, China;Institute of Public Health, School of Nursing, Henan University, 475004, Kaifeng, China;Department of Preventive Medicine, School of Public Health, Guangzhou Medical University, 510182, Guangzhou, China;

关键词: Multimorbidity;    Chronic diseases;    Functional independence;    Older adults;    Community-dwelling;    China;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12955-017-0635-7

 received in 2017-01-07, accepted in 2017-03-20,  发布年份 2017

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundMultimorbidity, the coexistence of two or more chronic diseases, is common in older adults. And it may lead to many adverse health outcomes, such as disability. However, data on multimorbidity and its relationship with functional independence are scarce in Asian countries. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the relationship between multimorbidity and functional status among older people in China.MethodsBased on a cross-sectional survey, the information regarding 2705 older adults, who were of at least 60 years of age, was collected through interviews and analyzed. To assess functional status, we used the Functional Independence Measure (FIM). Exploratory factor analysis was performed to assess correlations among chronic diseases. Several logistic regression models were run in the study.ResultsThe presence of two or more chronic conditions and the number of multimorbidity group overlaps were independent risk factors for the loss of functional independence in older adults. Hypertension and chronic pain, emerged as the most prevalent multimorbidity pair, was significantly associated with functional independence (OR = 1.64, 95% CI = 1.25–2.16), followed by the co-occurrence of hypertension and heart diseases with a lower prevalence but a higher OR compared with the former pair (OR = 1.72, 95% CI = 1.15–2.58). Of the five multimorbidity groups used for factor analysis, the bones and pain group (OR = 1.47, 95% CI = 1.23–1.77) and the cardiometabolic group (OR = 1.34, 95% CI = 1.13–1.59) were both found to be significantly correlated with lower functional independence.ConclusionsMultimorbidity was common among older people in Southern China. Studying the relationship between multimorbidity and functional status could be useful to find potential correlations among chronic diseases. Additionally, it may also be meaningful to identify multimorbidity combinations, posing an increased risk of loss of functional independence, and further improve functional status in older adults with comorbidities.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© The Author(s). 2017