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Are health surveys among elderly people worthwhile? The Albertina Project
A M Lindgren1, K Svärdsudd, G Tibblin
1Department of Family Medicine, Uppsala University, University Hospital, Sweden.
Objective:
To study the need for health screening among elderly people. SETTING, DESIGN AND SUBJECTS: A random sample of 605 people 75 years or older from the general population of Uppsala, Sweden received a postal questionnaire on health issues, and a random subsample of 101 persons were offered a health survey.
Main Outcome Measures:
Symptoms and signs of disease in questionnaire or at health examination.
Results:
Thirty-nine people came to the health examination at the primary health care centre (PHCC), 15 were examined in their homes, and 11 were interviewed by telephone. Seventy-eight findings were made in the PHCC group, out of which 60 were known by the proband and 18 were new. In ten cases some action was taken. Of the 54 people examined, 50 persons had one or several findings. The most prevalent problems were hypertension, urinary incontinence, and hearing problems. However, few of these problems warranted referral to a general practitioner or hospital.
Conclusions:
It appears that a health survey of elderly people yielded little new information on the state of health among those surveyed at the time of the data collection. The bearing on the present-day situation is discussed.