Prevalence of chronic diseases and its influencing factors among older people aged 65 years in Yiling mountainous area,Hubei province

Objective To examine prevalence and influential factors of non-communicable chronic diseases among elderly residents aged 65 years or older in Yiling mountainous area of Hubei province and to provide references for the intervention on the diseases.Methods Stratified cluster sampling method was adopted to select 4 002 people at the age of 65 years or older living in Yiling mountainous area and a questionnaire survey and physical examination were carried out among the residents selected.Results Among the participants of the survey,the prevalence rate of chronic diseases was 61.72%and the proportions of the elderly with 1,2,and 3 chronic diseases were 36.5%,16.9%,and 7.3%,respectively,with the 5 top prevalent diseases of hypertension(38.6%),heart disease(11.1%),joint diseases(10.4%),cough and asthma(7.3%),and gastrointestinal diseases(6.0%).The results of multivariate unconditioned logistic regression revealed the risk factors of the chronic diseases were at the age 75 years or older,having bad relationship with family members,poor sleep,and with a body mass index of ≥24.0 kg/m²;whereas the protective factors were male gender,with the education of primary school or lower,and with an annual familial income of less than 10 000 RMB Yuan among the elderly people.Conclusion The prevalence rate of chronic diseases is high and major factors related to the prevalence of the diseases are gender,age,educational level,family annual income,relationship between family members,sleep status,and body mass index among the elderly residents aged 65 years or more in Yiling mountainous area.