Life satisfaction and mortality in elderly people: The Kangwha Cohort Study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>As well as biomedical risk factors, psychological factors have been reported to be related to mortality rate. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between life satisfaction and mortality in elderly people through an 11.8-year follow-up study of a prospective cohort.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Among 3,600 participants of the Kangwha Cohort Study who survived in 1994, 1,939 respondents of the Life Satisfaction Index (LSI)-A questionnaire were included (men, 821; women, 1118). The mortality risk for the period up to December 2005 was measured using the Cox Proportional Hazard Model.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>When the relationship between LSI and mortality was evaluated in men, the unsatisfied group with lower LSI scores showed a significantly higher risk of all-cause mortality (hazard ratio [HR], 1.42; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.11-1.83) than the satisfied group with higher LSI scores. In women, the unsatisfied group showed a significantly higher risk of all-cause mortality (HR, 1.51; 95% CI, 1.18-1.92) and cardiovascular mortality (HR, 2.23; 95% CI, 1.30-3.85) than the satisfied group.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>We found that elderly people with a lower LSI score, regardless of gender, were at risk of increased mortality from all causes, and low LSI score was also associated with cardiovascular mortality.</p

Social relationships and health as predictors of life satisfaction in advanced old age: results from a Swedish longitudinal study

This longitudinal study examines the relationship between family and friend social support, health, and life satisfaction for a single cohort of eighty-year-old persons living in Lund, Sweden. Results indicate that participants who remained in the study are healthier and score higher on life satisfaction when compared with those who either drop-out or die prior to age eighty-three. Even though well-integrated with family and friends, the number of friends decreases significantly from eighty to eighty-three years; those who reported no close friends nearly doubled from eighty to eighty-three years. However, for those with close friends, contact with friends increases with age. In contrast to previous research, a correlational analysis indicates that neither child nor friend support is related to life satisfaction at either eighty or eighty-three years. However, health measures and satisfaction with sibling contact are related to total life satisfaction at age eighty-three only. These findings indicate the multidimensionality of both social support and life satisfaction for the old-old

Incidence and risk factors for depression and anxiety disorders: Results from a 34-year longitudinal Swedish cohort study.

This study is based on a total cohort (N = 192) of people born in 1902 and 1903 and living in southern Sweden. Subjects were assessed at baseline when 67 years of age and on eight further occasions over 34 years or until death. The participation rate in the nine examinations ranged from 78-100%. Interviews, psychological tests, and medical examinations were used as well as information on medical diagnoses from primary health care records and hospital records. The cumulative probability for the development of clinical depression during the follow-up was 8% and for anxiety 6%. The incidence rate for depression and for anxiety was highest during the period 67-81 years. Persons with poor financial status were more likely to be diagnosed with depression but no significant risk factor for anxiety was found. Only 14% developed depression and anxiety during the follow-up period, females more often than men. The strongest risk factors for the development of depression were perceived economic problems