Related Experiment Videos
Mortality in elderly men and women in a Swedish municipality
T M Gustafsson1, D G Isacson, M Thorslund
1Pharmaceutical Services Research and Centre for Primary Care Research, University of Uppsala, Uppsala, Sweden.
Aim:
to analyse the relationship between age, self-rated global health, morbidity, mobility, life satisfaction, marital status, social network and 6-year mortality in elderly men and women living at home.
Method:
the study area was a municipality in mid-eastern Sweden with a population of about 21,000. Data from interviews with non-institutionalized people aged 75 years and older in 1986 (n = 421) were linked to an individual-based research registry of prescription drug purchases. The elderly subjects were followed for 6 years. Information on mortality was obtained from the national cause of death register. A combined measure of morbidity captured both self-reported symptoms/diseases and prescription drugs.
Results:
mortality was higher in men than women (P < 0.001). Multivariate analysis was performed using logistic regression analysis. Among elderly men, morbidity-related factors-self-rated global health, heart problems and diabetes mellitus, for example--were the most important predictors of mortality. Among women, the predictors were spread over more domains (morbidity, mobility, social network).