Chronic conditions, multimorbidity, and quality of life among patients attending monk healers and primary care clinics in Thailand

Bidirectional association between functional disability and multimorbidity among middle-aged and older adults in Thailand

Objectives

The purpose of this study was to assess the bidirectional association between multimorbidity (MM) and functional disability among middle-aged and older adults in a longitudinal study in Thailand.

Methods

We analyzed longitudinal data of participants aged 45 years and older from two consecutive waves (in 2015 and 2017) of the Health, Aging, and Retirement in Thailand (HART). Functional disability was assessed with a 4-item activity of daily living (ADL) scale. Logistic regression analysis was conducted to assess the association between baseline functional disability and incident MM (≥2), and baseline morbidity and incident functional disability.

Results

The results indicate that a total of 1,716 individuals without morbidity at baseline and 3,529 without functional disability at baseline were included. At follow-up, 16.7 and 20.0% of functional disability cases and 7.1 and 3.6% of nonfunctional disability cases developed 2 morbidities and 3 or more morbidities, respectively, and 6.6% of MM cases and 4.0% of non-MM cases developed a functional disability. In the final logistic regression model adjusted for education, income, age, marital status, sex, smoking tobacco, body mass index (BMI), alcohol use, physical activity, and social engagement, functional disability at baseline was positively associated with incident MM (≥2) (adjusted odds ratio [aOR]: 2.58, 95% CI: 1.42-4.72), and MM (≥3) at baseline was positively associated with incident functional disability (aOR: 1.97, 95% CI: 1.13-3.43).

Conclusion

Multimorbidity and functional disability were bidirectionally associated.

Determinants of Health-Related Quality of Life Among Community-Dwelling Thai Older Adults in Chiang Mai, Northern Thailand

Background

Population aging has been growing worldwide and Thailand has become an aged society with 20% of its population aged 60 and over. Age-related decline in physical and mental health impacts the health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of older adults.

Purpose

We aimed to describe the HRQOL of Thai older adults, residing in the community.

Methods

This cross-sectional survey was part of a Community-Integrated Intermediary Care project (CIIC), TCTR20190412004. A total of 1509 participants from an intervention arm of a cluster randomized controlled trial were included. A Thai version of the Euro-Qol questionnaire (EQ-5D-5L) was used to determine the HRQOL and associated sociodemographic background, health behaviors and underlying diseases of a representative sample from Maehia, Chiang Mai, Thailand. SPSS version 24 was used to analyze data via descriptive analysis and binary logistic regression.

Results

The mean age of the participants was 69.31±7.10 years, and nearly a quarter (23.8%) was older than 75 years. The mean EQ index score was 0.81±0.23 and older age, lower educational attainment, unemployment, lack of exercise habits, current smokers, having history of a fall in the last 6 months, diabetes, hyperlipidemia, dependency assessed using Barthel's Activity of Daily Living (ADL) Index, and depression using the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) were more likely to represent HRQOL-related problems.

Conclusion

Our findings have highlighted the factors affecting the HRQOL of community-dwelling older adults which could be of importance in preparing for active and healthy aging communities. The routine dependency assessment using the ADL index will be useful in estimating the HRQOL of the aging population. Fall prevention programs are also recommended to reduce dependency. Moreover, the association of having diabetes and hyperlipidemia with problems in HRQOL dimensions highlight the need for public health intervention not only to prevent the increasing burden of non-communicable diseases but also to improve the HRQOL of older adults.

The association between educational level and multimorbidity among adults in Southeast Asia: A systematic review

BACKGROUND

In Southeast Asia, the prevalence of multimorbidity is gradually increasing. This paper aimed to investigate the association between educational level and multimorbidity among over 15-years old adults in Southeast Asia.

METHODS

We conducted a systematic review of published observational studies. Studies were selected according to eligibility criteria of addressing definition and prevalence of multimorbidity and associations between level of education and multimorbidity in Southeast Asia. The Newcastle-Ottawa Scale (NOS) was used to measure the quality and risk of bias. The methodology has been published in PROSPERO with registered number ID: CRD42021259311.

RESULTS

Eighteen studies were included in the data synthesis. The results are presented using narrative synthesis due to the heterogeneity of differences in exposures, outcomes, and methodology. The prevalence of multimorbidity ranged from 1.7% to 72.6% among over 18 years-old adults and from 1.5% to 51.5% among older people (≥ 60 years). There were three association patterns linking between multimorbidity and education in these studies: (1) higher education reducing odds of multimorbidity, (2) higher education increasing odds of multimorbidity and (3) education having no association with multimorbidity. The association between educational attainment and multimorbidity also varies widely across countries. In Singapore, three cross-sectional studies showed that education had no association with multimorbidity among adults. However, in Indonesia, four cross-sectional studies found higher educated persons to have higher odds of multimorbidity among over 40-years-old persons.

CONCLUSIONS

Published studies have shown inconsistent associations between education and multimorbidity because of different national contexts and the lack of relevant research in the region concerned. Enhancing objective data collection such as physical examinations would be necessary for studies of the connection between multimorbidity and education. It can be hypothesised that more empirical research would reveal that a sound educational system can help people prevent multimorbidity.