Quality of life, level of functioning, and its relationship with mental and physical disorders in the elderly: results from the MentDis_ICF65+ study

Abstract

Background: An ageing population worldwide needs to investigate quality of life (QoL) and level of functioning (LoF) in the elderly and its associated variables. We aimed to study the relationship between Quality of Life (QoL) and Level of Functioning (LoF) in an elderly population in Europe. Method: As part of the Ment_Dis65+ European Project, 3142 community-dwelling adults aged 65-84 years in six countries were assessed by using the adaptation for the elderly of the Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI65+) to provide psychiatric diagnosis according to the International Classification of Diseases (10th edition) (ICD-10 Classification of Mental and Behavioural Disorders). Socio-demographic and clinical interviews, and two selfreport tools, the World Health Organization QoL assessment (WHO QoL BREF), to assess QoL, and the WHO Disability Assessment Schedule-II (WHODAS-II), to assess LoF, were also administered. Results: Most subjects reported good levels of QoL (56.6%) and self-rated health (62%), with no or mild disability (58.8%). There was a linear decrease of the QoL and the LoF by increase of age. Elderly with ICD-10 mental disorder (e.g. somatoform, affective and anxiety disorders) had poorer QoL and lower LoF. There were a number of predictors of lower levels of QoL and disability, including both socio-demographic variables (e.g. male gender, increase in age, poor financial situation, retirement, reduced number of close significant others), ICD-10 psychiatric diagnosis (mainly anxiety, somatoform disorders) and presence of medical disorders (mainly heart and respiratory diseases).

Lifestyle Behaviors and Quality of Life among Older Adults after the First Wave of the COVID-19 Pandemic in Hubei China

“…In line with previous evidence, the ndings revealed that the elderly with higher levels of education showed higher QoL levels [34,35]. Employed participants and the elderly below 69 years of age showed higher QoL, con rming previous research results [35]. As suggested in previous studies [34], the elderly with lesser family associations demonstrated signi cantly poorer QoL than those with su cient socialization.…”

“…In terms of the characteristics of QoL, as suggested in previous studies, older adults with better economic situations showed higher levels of QoL than those with lower economic conditions [32,33]. In line with previous evidence, the ndings revealed that the elderly with higher levels of education showed higher QoL levels [34,35]. Employed participants and the elderly below 69 years of age showed higher QoL, con rming previous research results [35].…”

Exploring the influencing factors of quality of life among the empty nesters in Shanxi, China: a structural equation model

“…This study revealed that QOL of empty nesters were significantly influenced by gender, age, education, monthly income, drinking status, exercise frequency, physical examination frequency, attention to daily nutritional health, relationship with children, relationship with spouse. Generally, empty nesters who were the older adults [ 38 ], low education level [ 9 ] and low-income individuals [ 39 ] might have less awareness and ability to maintain health, which means they could not be of better QOL. In addition, we explore the association between socio-economic status, behavioral lifestyle, family relationship and QOL among the empty nesters, and verified the relationship among them.…”

Physical Activity Promotes Health and Reduces Cardiovascular Mortality in Depressed Populations: A Literature Overview

“…Depressed individuals also show a lower adherence to medications, especially for chronic disease such as cardiovascular ones [ 54 ]. In the elderly, the role of depression and physical diseases, especially cardiovascular disease, in impacting level of functioning and disability [ 55 ] is also mediated by low physical activity and time spent watching TV [ 56 ].…”