[Risk factors for hospital admission in persons older than 64-years of age].
OBJECTIVE
To determine factors associated with hospitalization in a representative sample of population older than 64 years.


METHODS
Cohort study on a sample of 3,214 representative subjects of the population 65 years and older from the judicial district of Toledo (Spain).


METHODS
Personal home interview collecting data on: sociodemographic factors, comorbidity, basic and instrumental activities of daily life, conigitive decline and depressive disorder, self-rated health and previous use of health services. Hospital discharge in the 12-month period after the interview in anyone of the three hospitals in the study area were analyzed.


RESULTS
342 (10.6%) of the subjects spent at least one night in the hospital in the year after the accomplishment of the interview. Risk factors for hospitalization in the logistical model were: advanced age (OR: 1.02), male sex (OR: 1.37), presence of cardiopathy (OR: 1.97) or chronic obstruction to airflow (OR: 1.57), visual deficit (OR: 1.88), worse self-rated health (OR: 1.37) and having used the hospital previously (OR: 3.45). Alcohol consumption was a protective factor (OR: 0.70).


CONCLUSIONS
Risk factors for hospitalization are of diverse origin. The previous admission is the strongest predictive factor for new hospitalization.
Pérez Martín
A
A
Sección de Geriatría, Hospital Geriátrico Virgen del Valle, Complejo Hospitalario de Toledo. aperezm@cht.insalud.es
García García
F J
FJ
Martín Correa
E
E
Romero Rizos
L
L
Rodríguez Barquero
M J
MJ
Echevarría Santamaría
I
I
García Colmenero
C
C
D017677:Age Distribution; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D006760:Hospitalization / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D017678:Sex Distribution; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013030:Spain / Q000453:epidemiology