Common Physical Morbidities Among Old People of a City of Eastern Nepal

Abstract

Dhana Ratna Shakya and Robin Maskey

Introduction: The data regarding the prevalence of common health problems of elderly people will help raise concern for their wellbeing.

Objective: To measure prevalence of common physical problems among old people.

Methodology: The community old people were the members of a local group in a city of eastern Nepal and they were the subject of this study. Out of total of 140 old people of age ≥ 60 years responding to the GHQ-12 and the questionnaire about demographic and clinical information (diabetes mellitus, hypertension, thyroid and other common diseases) after informed written consent and authority approval, blood sample was collected from 115 subjects for Thyroid Function Test, Creatinine and sugar. They attended a health-camp later organized in their city. The data were analysed for the physical morbidities.

Results: Among a total of 115 elder subjects analysed, majority 94 (81.74%) were female and 91 (79.13%) in the age groups of (60-70) and (70-80) years. Forty subjects (34.7%) had one or other physical diseases. The common physical morbidities were: Cardiovascular (35%), Gastrointestinal (17%), respiratory and diabetes (10% each), orthopedic (9%), CNS and Eye/ ENT (3% each) and other diseases (13%). About half of the subjects had score of ≥2 i.e. ‘psychiatric caseness’ i.e. mental illness.

Conclusion: High proportion of old people had current physical morbidities, common being cardiovascular diseases, gastrointestinal, thyroid abnormalities and diabetes.

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