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[LIVING LONGER, BETTER] Healthspan increasing for almost everyone

The healthspan - the number of healthy years a person lives - is, on average, increasing even for people with common chronic conditions, according to UK researchers. To determine whether this extension to life involves an increase in years with or without disability, the team analyzed data from two large population-based studies of people ages 65 or over in England. The studies involved baseline interviews with 7,635 people in 1991-1993 and 7,762 in 2008-2011, with two years of follow-up in each case.

For both healthy people and those with health conditions, the average years of disability-free life expectancy (DFLE) increased during the study period. Overall, men gained 4.6 years in life expectancy and 3.7 years in DFLE. Men with conditions such as arthritis, coronary heart disease, stroke and diabetes gained more years in DFLE than years with disability. The greatest improvements in DFLE in men were seen for those with respiratory difficulties and those living post-stroke.

In the same period, women experienced an increase in life expectancy of 2.1 years, and an increase in DFLE of 2 years. Similar to men, most improvement in life expectancy for those with long-term conditions was in disability-free years. However, women with cognitive impairment experienced an increase in life expectancy with disability (1.6 years) without any improvement in DFLE. Men with cognitive impairment experienced only a small increase in DFLE (1.4 years) with a comparable increase in life expectancy with disability.

"While these findings are mostly positive, we found an increase in the percentage of remaining years spent with disability for men and women with cognitive impairment. This is a cause for concern and requires further investigation," the authors write.

To read the study, published in PLOS Medicine, click here

 

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