Objective: to identify subgroup within the population with reduc or delayed disability during healthy ageing.Objective: to identify subgroup within the population with reduc or delayed disability during healthy ageing. Design: a longitudinal, community-based application of mind Setting: Dubbo, New South Wales, Australia. Participants: 2805 men and women 60 years and older first examined in 1988-89 result measures: activities of daily living assessed serially each 2 years over 8 years (scored in the range 0-6 least to in the greatest degree impaired); scores related to later hospital admissions and to demographic, clinical and psychosocial characteristics at baseline. Results: 1973 men and women provided undivided follow-up data. Mean disability score at entrance was low at 0.18 and increased to 069 according to the final survey. Those having three or more hospital admissions (40% of the sample) had minimum disability (disability score approximately 03) around 5 years earlier than those with fewer admissions. Those with dementia or other mental illness had the principally severe disability (mean disability scores of 315 and 213 respectively), still their numbers were very small. Those with a reverse or respiratory illness were more numerous and they had major physical disability (mean disability scores of 144 and 132 respectively). In a regression example the statistically significant baseline predictors of disability at the final review were age, body mass index, use of anti-hypertensive medication, history of calamity depression score, peak expiratory deliquesce and physical disability. Conclusions: the findings confirm reduc or delayed disability in older citizens requiting little or no hospitalization. Age, impaired peak expiratory melt and physical disability at close attention entry were most strongly predictive of disability, while shock and respiratory illness were relatively used by all causes of severe disability. COPYRIGHT 2000 Oxford University Press |
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