PROXIMAL PREDICTORS OF CHANGE IN QUALITY OF LIFE AT OLDER AGES

Elizabeth A Webb (1) , David Blane (1) , Anne Mcmunn (2) , Gopalakrishnan Netuveli (1)

1 Respiratory Epidemiology and Public Health
2 UCL - University College of London [London]

Objective To investigate whether changes in health, social and economic circumstances predict change in quality of life at older ages. Design Secondary analysis, using multiple regression analyses, of waves 1 and 3 of the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing. Setting England, 2002-2006 Participants Nationally representative sample of non-institutionalised adults aged over 50 living in England with non-missing data for the variables of interest (N=4848). Main outcome measure Quality of life (QoL) in 2006, with reference to QoL in 2002, both measured using CASP-19 score. Results Mean QoL decreased over the four years, with becoming depressed (â -0.12) and developing difficulties with activities of daily living (â -0.08) contributing to this decrease. Improvements in family relationships (â 0.10), the neighbourhood (â 0.08) and perceived financial position (â 0.07) each counteracted the decline in QoL. Initial QoL strongly predicted QoL at follow-up (â 0.46). Regression models explained 59% of variation in QoL, and there were small differences between age and gender groups. Conclusions Maintenance of good QoL in older aged people is enabled by the avoidance of depression, maintenance of physical function, good neighbourhood standards, family relationships and financial circumstances.

Mots clés: OLD AGE; QUAL OF LIFE MEASMNT

Elizabeth A Webb, David Blane, Anne Mcmunn, Gopalakrishnan Netuveli. PROXIMAL PREDICTORS OF CHANGE IN QUALITY OF LIFE AT OLDER AGES. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 2010, 65 (6), pp.542. ⟨10.1136/jech.2009.101758⟩. ⟨hal-00591157⟩