Multimorbidity gender patterns in hospitalized elderly patients.

Area of Science:

• Gerontology
• Internal Medicine
• Epidemiology

Background:

• Multimorbidity affects vulnerable elders with complex health needs.
• Understanding gender-specific patterns and prognostic implications is crucial for this population.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate gender differences in multimorbidity patterns among elderly patients.
• To assess the prognostic implications of these patterns on mortality and readmissions.

Main Methods:

• Prospective cohort study of 843 elderly patients with multimorbidity.
• Collected data on multimorbidity criteria, Charlson, PROFUND, Barthel indexes, and Pfeiffer test.
• Analyzed in-hospital mortality, 1-month readmissions, and 1-year mortality.

Main Results:

• Women exhibited greater functional dependence, cognitive deterioration, and specific conditions (heart failure, autoimmune, dementia, osteoarticular).
• Men presented with higher comorbidity scores (Charlson index) and predominant conditions (ischemic heart disease, respiratory, neoplasms).
• No significant gender differences were found in in-hospital mortality, 1-month readmissions, or 1-year mortality.

Conclusions:

• Multimorbidity patterns differ by gender, with women showing greater functional impairment and men higher comorbidity, but prognosis remains similar.
• Age, Charlson, Barthel, and PROFUND indexes predicted mortality, but gender was not a significant predictor.
• Prognostic indicators like Charlson and PROFUND indexes demonstrated varying accuracy in predicting mortality between genders.