Identification of population multimorbidity patterns in 3.9 million patients from Bogota in 2018

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Epidemiology
• Health Systems Research

Background:

• Multimorbidity presents a significant challenge to healthcare systems globally, linked to adverse health outcomes.
• There is a scarcity of data on multimorbidity prevalence and patterns, especially in low- and middle-income countries.
• Understanding local patterns is crucial for targeted health interventions and resource allocation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To characterize the patterns of multimorbidity within the population of Bogotá, Colombia.
• To identify common diagnosis associations and their prevalence.
• To analyze these patterns across different demographic groups (age, sex, socioeconomic status).

Main Methods:

• Cross-sectional study utilizing 16 million medical consultation records from Bogotá in 2018.
• Network analysis was employed to quantify multimorbidity prevalence and co-occurrence of diagnoses.
• Data were stratified by age, sex, and socioeconomic status for detailed analysis.

Main Results:

• The overall prevalence of multimorbidity was 44.2%, increasing with age and higher in women.
• Common comorbidities varied by age and sex: allergies/asthma in youth, obesity/hypothyroidism in young women, obesity/dyslipidemia in young men, and hypertension/dyslipidemia in older adults.
• Significant associations with the subsidized health scheme were observed, particularly trauma in men, indicating potential healthcare access disparities.

Conclusions:

• The study reveals significant multimorbidity patterns in Bogotá, highlighting sociodemographic inequalities.
• Findings underscore the need to address disparities in healthcare access and data collection biases.
• Further research is recommended to explore the reasons behind observed prevalence differences in vulnerable populations.