Measurement issues in preventive strategies: past, present, and future.
Prevention of the chronic health conditions of older people can potentially affect both life expectancy and health. In the past, fatal conditions, namely coronary heart disease, cancer, and stroke, dominated work on preventive strategies with the only outcome of concern being mortality. The present increasing life expectancy of the population has put persons at risk for the nonfatal and often disabling conditions of old age, such as dementia, osteoporosis and hip fracture, sensory impairments, and arthritis, to name a few. These conditions have major effects on, not the quantity, but the quality of life. In the future, quality of life measured in a variety of ways will be necessary to evaluate the effects of preventive strategies for nonfatal conditions.
Rudberg
M A
MA
Department of Medicine, University of Chicago, IL 60637.
Furner
S E
SE
Cassel
C K
CK
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002561:Cerebrovascular Disorders / Q000517:prevention & control*; D003327:Coronary Disease / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006233:Persons with Disabilities; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008017:Life Expectancy; D009017:Morbidity; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000517:prevention & control*; D011788:Quality of Life