Prevalence of disability among elderly people in the occupied Palestinian territory: a cross-sectional study

Abstract

Background From the 2011 Palestinian Center Bureau of Statistics, disability is defined as long-term physical, mental, intellectual, or sensory impairment that can hinder full and effective participation in society; disability among elderly people has become a major public health concern in recent years. More than 1 billion people live with disability worldwide. In the occupied Palestinian territory, disability in elderly people is still not well understood. This study aims to assess the prevalence of disability among Palestinians aged 50 years or older and associated factors. Methods Data were obtained from the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics Disability-Survey of 2011, representing the Palestinian population. People aged 50 years or older were selected. We gathered descriptive statistics and used multivariate binary logistic regression to check for confounders. Data were analysed with SPSS17 software. Findings The total sample size was 8747 people aged 50 years or older. 71% of those had no disability and the remaining 29% reportedly had at least one disability, of which 53% represented problems with mobility, 26% vision, 11% hearing, 7% memory, 1% mental health, 1% communication, and 1% intellectual. Men were less likely to be disabled than women (odds ratio [OR] 0•75, 95% CI 0•64-0•89, p=0•001). The level of disability increased at age 70 and older (OR 1•96, 95% CI 1•67-2•31). The percentage of disabled elderly people increased among those who could not read compared with those educated (OR 2•93, 95% CI 2•36-3•63); decreased in those with large families compared with families of fewer than three people (for families of three to six people, OR 0•73, 95% CI 0•63-0•84; for families of seven to 27 people, 0•59, 0•50-0•70); increased in refugees compared with non-refugees (OR 1•26, 95% CI 1•07-1•47, p=0•005); increased in non-workers compared with workers (OR 2•96, 95% CI 2•50-3•49); and increased in those widowed and divorced compared with people who were married (OR 1•25, 95% CI 1•07-1•47, p=0•005). Compared with the centre of the West Bank, the number of people with disability was highest in the Gaza Strip (OR 2•23, 95% CI 1•89-2•63), followed by north West Bank (OR 2•60, 95% CI 2•22-3•05), and south West Bank (OR 1•95, 95% CI 1•63-2•33). Interpretation Disability is more prevalent in women, those not educated, refugees, non-workers, widowed and divorced individuals, and people in Gaza. Further investigations are needed to establish the main causes of disability in the occupied Palestinian territory, and associated factors. Funding None. Contributors JJBJ participated in the method, data analysis, interpretation, conclusion, writing, and overall work integration. NAYH participated in the introduction, data analysis, and in writing. LSAZ participated in data analysis. AA-MS participated in Abstract conclusion. RGh participated in data analysis, conclusion, and interpretation. RGi supervised all the work. All authors approved the final version of the Abstract for publication. Declaration of interests We d...

Prevalence of Older Adult Disability and Primary Health Care Responsiveness in Low-Income Communities

“…A previous study, conducted in São Paulo [ 13 ], found the prevalence of global disability to be 62.2%, higher than that observed in the present study, although that study included individuals ≥65 years of age, rather than ≥60 years of age as in the present study. Similarly, in São Paulo and Manaus, the prevalence of global disability was higher than that reported in studies investigating younger populations [ 5 , 23 , 25 , 35 ], which is to be expected because disability is age dependent [ 12 , 20 ].…”

“…Within the elder population, the prevalence of disability is higher among women, the oldest age brackets, individuals with a lower level of education, and residents of low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), as demonstrated by studies conducted in several countries in Europe, Asia, Africa, the Americas, and the Middle East [ 5 , 8 , 12 , 13 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 ]. Knowing the functional status of the elder population is important to identify the most vulnerable members and their health needs.…”

Incapacidade funcional em idosos cadastrados na Estratégia Saúde da Família nos municípios de São Paulo e Manaus: prevalência e fatores associados

“…Em geral, as mulheres e os idosos mais velhos são os grupos populacionais com maior prevalência de incapacidade funcional, segundo estudos realizados em vários países da Europa, Ásia, África, Américas e Oriente Médio (Almazán-Isla et al, 2014, Biritwun et al, 2016, Katta et al, 2017, Naidoo et al, 2017, Jasser et al, 2017, Adib-Hajbaghery, 2011, Ćwirlej-Sozańska et al, 2018, Almazán-Isla et al, 2017Rodrigues et al, 2009;Hosseinpoor et al, 2012). Estudos nacionais e internacionais associaram a incapacidade funcional ao aumento da idade, baixa renda e menor escolaridade (Alves, 2010;Silva, 2013;Van den Brink et al, 2003;Berkman et al, 1989;Graciani et al, 2004;Alves et al, 2008;Huisman et al, 2003;Alves & Rodrigues, 2005;Jasser et al, 2017;Courtney-Long, 2015). Lima-Costa et al, 2007).…”

“…Alguns estudos compararam a prevalência de incapacidade funcional entre países e atribuíram suas diferenças às características populacionais (Sousa et al, 2009;Gomez-Olive et al, 2017). Dentro os idosos, a prevalência de incapacidade funcional foi geralmente maior entre as mulheres, as faixas etárias mais velhas, indivíduos com menor nível de escolaridade, com mais comorbidades e residentes em países de renda média e baixa, como demonstrado por estudos realizados em países da Europa, Ásia, África, Américas e Oriente Médio (Rodrigues et al, 2009;Sousa et al, 2009;Adib-Hajbaghery, 2011;Pedro-Cuesta et al, 2011;Hosseinpoor et al, 2012;Silva et al 2013, Almazán-Isla et al, 2014Courtney-Long, 2015;Biritwun et al, 2016;Almazán-Isla et al, 2017;Argyriou et al, 2017;Gomez-Olive et al, 2017;Jasser et al, 2017;Katta et al, 2017;Naidoo et al, 2017;Waterhouse et al, 2017;Ćwirlej-Sozańska et al, 2018;Giacomin et al, 2018 (Barros et al, 2006).…”

“…Um estudo anterior, realizado em São Paulo (Silva, 2013), encontrou a prevalência de incapacidade funcional global em 62,2%, superior à observada no presente estudo, tendo incluído indivíduos com idade ≥ 65 anos, em vez de ≥ 60 anos. Da mesma forma, em São Paulo e Manaus a prevalência de incapacidade funcional global foi maior do que as prevalências relatadas em estudos que investigaram populações mais jovens (Korff et al, 2008;Courtney-Long, 2015;Jasser et al, 2017;Naidoo et al ., 2017;Giacomin et al, 2018), o que é esperado visto a incapacidade funcional estar associada a mais idade (Biritwum et al, 2016;Gomez-Olive et al, 2017).…”