Multimorbidity patterns and their associations with physical function among the elderly in China
Objective To identify the multimorbidity patterns and their associations with physical function among the elderly in China.Methods Four rounds of data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study(CHARLS 2011-2018),including individuals aged 60 and above.Exploratory factor analysis based on a four-way correlation matrix was employed to identify multimorbidity patterns among the 13 non-communicable chronic diseases.Mixed-effects models were used to examine longitudinal associations between multimorbidity patterns and physical function(grip strength and lower limb function).Stratified and interaction analysis was used to explore the influence of demographic characteristics on these associations.Results The study included 12 994 individuals aged 60 and above.The prevalence of multi-morbidity increased steadily from 77.88％in 2011 to 88.88％in 2018,with a higher prevalence in females(81.10％,83.45％,88.43％,91.19％)than in males(74.68％,77.68％,82.70％,86.43％).Five multimorbidity patterns were identified,including visceral and skeletal diseases,respiratory system diseases,neurodegenerative diseases,cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases,and glucose disorders.Higher factor scores of multimorbidity patterns were associated with an increased risk of physical function decline,especially for grip strength[T3 vs.T1:OR=-1.07,95％confidence interval(CI):-1.45 to-0.68]and lower limb function(T3 vs.T1:OR=1.76,95％CI:1.40-2.22)with cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases.Subgroup analysis revealed a positive associations between multimorbidity patterns scores and lower limb function only in males(T3 vs.T1:OR=3.18,95％CI:2.20-4.59)and those with the lowest education level(T3 vs.T1:OR=1.70,95％CI:1.29-2.24).Conclusions Multimorbidity was prevalent among elderly individuals in China,and different multimorbidity patterns could have varying impacts on their later physical function,with possible gender and educational differences.
The elderlyMultimorbidity patternsGrip strengthLower limb functionPhysical function
NETL
NSTL
万方数据
