TY - JOUR T1 - Comorbidity and functional trajectories from midlife to old age: the Health and Retirement Study. JF - J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci Y1 - 2015 A1 - Stenholm, Sari A1 - Westerlund, Hugo A1 - Head, Jenny A1 - Hyde, Martin A1 - Ichiro Kawachi A1 - Pentti, Jaana A1 - Mika Kivimäki A1 - Vahtera, Jussi KW - Activities of Daily Living KW - Age Factors KW - Aged KW - Aged, 80 and over KW - Chronic disease KW - Comorbidity KW - Female KW - Health Status KW - Humans KW - Longitudinal Studies KW - Male KW - Middle Aged KW - Retirement KW - Socioeconomic factors KW - United States AB -

BACKGROUND: The number of diseases and physical functioning difficulties tend to increase with age. The aim of this study was to examine the trajectories of physical functioning across age groups and whether the trajectories differ according to disease status in different population subgroups.

METHODS: Repeat data from a nationally representative population sample, the Health and Retirement Study, was used. Participants were 10,709 men and 13,477 women aged 60-107 years at baseline with biennial surveys from 1992 to 2010. Average length of follow-up was 10.3 years ranging from 0 to 18 years. Disease status and physical functioning was asked about at all study phases and 10 items were summed to obtain a physical functioning score (0-10).

RESULTS: Age modified the relationship between number of chronic diseases and physical functioning with older participants having more physical functioning difficulties with increasing number of diseases. An average 70-year-old participant with no diseases had 0.89 (95% CI: 0.85-0.93) physical functioning difficulties, with one disease 1.72 (95% CI: 1.69-1.76) difficulties, with two diseases 2.57 (95% CI: 2.52-2.62) difficulties, and with three or more diseases 3.82 (95% CI: 3.76-3.88) difficulties. Of the individual diseases memory-related diseases, stroke, pulmonary diseases, and arthritis were associated with significantly higher physical functioning difficulties compared with other diseases.

CONCLUSIONS: Comorbidity is associated with greater burden of physical functioning difficulties. Of the studied diseases, memory-related diseases, stroke, pulmonary diseases, and arthritis alone or in combination limit most physical functioning.

PB - 70 VL - 70 UR - http://biomedgerontology.oxfordjournals.org/content/early/2014/07/23/gerona.glu113.abstract IS - 3 U1 - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25060316?dopt=Abstract U2 - PMC4336333 U4 - Aging/Comorbidity/Physical functioning/Disability/Disability ER -