Predictors of death in seniors

This article updates information on the leading causes of death for people aged 65 or older, and examines factors associated with death in seniors over an eight-year period. The analysis focuses on psychosocial factors--psychological distress, financial and family stress--in relation to mortality.

Data are from the Canadian Mortality Database and the 1994/95 to 2002/03 National Population Health Survey (NPHS), longitudinal file. The NPHS sample analysed contains records for 955 men and 1,445 women.

Death certificate information for 2002 and Census population estimates were used to calculate death rates and rank causes of death. NPHS data were cross-tabulated to examine selected characteristics reported in 1994/95 in relation to vital status (dead or alive) by 2002/03. Cox regression was used to calculate hazards ratios for psychological distress, financial and family-related stress in relation to subsequent mortality, while controlling for the effects of age, chronic diseases, and other potential confounders.

In senior women, psychological distress in 1994/95 was positively associated with mortality over the next eight years, even when controlling for the effects of other variables. The statistical significance of this relationship in senior men disappeared when controlling for chronic conditions.