Health Policy Manag.  2019 Dec;29(4):469-481. 10.4332/KJHPA.2019.29.4.469.

Association between Arthritis and Socio-Demographic Factors in Korean Elderlies: The National Survey of Korean Elderly (2014, 2017) Dataset Analysis

Affiliations
  • 1Health Care Business, 3M Korea, Seoul, Korea.
  • 2Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
  • 3Department of Hospital Administration, Yonsei University Graduate School of Public Health, Seoul, Korea.
  • 4Clinical Trial Center, Ewha Womans University Mokdong Hospital, Seoul, Korea.
  • 5School of Economics, The Graduate School, Yonsei University, Seoul, Korea.
  • 6Department of Health Policy and Management, Yonsei University Graduate School of Public Health, Seoul, Korea. wchung@yuhs.ac

Abstract

BACKGROUND
As South Korea is becoming an aged society very rapidly, the increase in osteoarthritis prevalence raises various public health issues in this country. This study aimed to explore the socio-demographic factors associated with osteoarthritis in the current Korean elderlies.
METHODS
Using the National Survey of Korean Elderly data (2014, 2017), we analyzed 20,326 elderlies (males, 8,248; females, 12,078) and conducted multivariate logistic regression analyses by sex. The dependent variable is whether a participant was diagnosed with osteoarthritis or not. Independent variables of interest is socio-demographic factors such as age, marital status, household type, residential area, household income, religion, the longest job, the number of close relatives, the number of close friends, and survey year. Control variables are various health behavioral factors and disease-related factors.
RESULTS
Prevalence of osteoarthritis was 19.2% in male elderlies and 47.0% in female elderlies. According to the results of the multivariate logistic regression adjusted for all studied control variables, the odds ratio (OR) for having osteoarthritis of under-elementary school graduates (their counterpart was college graduate group) was 1.81 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.29-2.52) in males and 1.67 (95% CI, 1.12-2.47) in females. The OR of those having a job in agriculture & forestry fishery as their longest job (their counterpart was those who had never participated in labor force during their lifetime) was 5.07 (95% CI, 1.46-17.58) in males and 1.49 (95% CI, 1.27-1.74) in females. In males, the second-low quartile group in household yearly income (their counterpart was the highest quartile group) had the OR of 1.22 (95% CI, 0.98-1.53). In females, the OR of those having a religion of Buddhism (their counterpart was those having no religion) was 1.20 (95% CI, 1.07-1.35) and the OR of those who had no relatives (their counterpart was those having more than 3 close relatives) was 1.31 (95% CI, 1.10-1.56).
CONCLUSION
This study found that in Korean elderlies, education, the longest job, household income, religion, and the number of close relatives are associated with their suffering from osteoarthritis. Further study and designing appropriate interventions are needed to alleviate current and future individual and socioeconomic burdens of osteoarthritis in an aged society like South Korea.

Keyword

Osteoarthritis; Republic of Korea; Aged; Chronic disease; Socio-demographic factors

MeSH Terms

Aged*
Agriculture
Arthritis*
Buddhism
Chronic Disease
Dataset*
Education
Employment
Family Characteristics
Female
Fisheries
Forestry
Friends
Health Behavior
Humans
Korea
Logistic Models
Male
Marital Status
Odds Ratio
Osteoarthritis
Prevalence
Public Health
Republic of Korea
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