Sg. Leveille et al., Sex differences in the prevalence of mobility disability in old age: The dynamics of incidence, recovery, and mortality, J GERONT B, 55(1), 2000, pp. S41-S50
Citations number
30
Categorie Soggetti
Public Health & Health Care Science","Medical Research General Topics
Journal title
JOURNALS OF GERONTOLOGY SERIES B-PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES
Objectives. This study examined sex differences in the prevalence of mobili
ty disability in older adults according to the influences of three componen
ts of prevalence: disability incidence, recovery from disability, and morta
lity.
Methods. Participants in a population-based study of older adults from thre
e communities in the United States (N = 10,263) were studied for up to 7 ye
ars. Life table methods were used to estimate the influence of each of the
three components of disability prevalence in women and men. Sex differences
in probabilities for transition states were measured by relative risks der
ived from a single model using a Markov chain approach.
Results. The proportion of disabled women increased from 22% of women aged
70 years to 81% of those aged 90 years. In men, comparable figures were 15%
and 57%. Incidence had the greatest impact on the sex differences in disab
ility prevalence until age 90 and older when recovery rates had a greater i
mpact on differences in prevalence. Mortality differences in men and women
had only a modest impact on sex differences in disability prevalence. These
findings initially seemed to contradict striking sex differences observed
in the relative risks for mortality in men compared with women. Subsequent
graphical analyses showed that incidence rather than recovery or mortality
largely accounted for sex differences in disability prevalence in old age.
Conclusion. Disability incidence, recovery from disability and mortality dy
namically influence the sex differences in the prevalence of mobility disab
ility. However, incidence has the greatest impact overall on the higher pre
valence of disability in women compared with men.