title: [Characterization of elderly diabetics receiving secondary care].
abstract: The purpose of this survey is to characterize elderly diabetics by social, demographic and economic variables, describing their health status, functional capacity and use of healthcare services, related to the time when diabetes was diagnosed, in order to contribute to future healthcare planning actions in this area. The population sample was obtained through the diabetes services at three endocrinology units in Uberaba, Minas Gerais State in the course of a year, interviewing 113 elderly diabetics at home. The simple frequency distribution was used for the analysis, together with descriptive measurements. Associations were studied through chi2 (p< 0.05) test; 72.6% of the respondents were women with average age of 69 years (+/- 4.6). The longest times since diagnosis (51.3%) are between ten and twenty years. All the respondents presented other health problems in addition to diabetes. The main aspects of dependence identified through functional capacity were: trimming toenails (23.9%) and use of transportation (18.6%). The time since diagnosis was not an aggravating factor for dependence among these elderly diabetics. However, dependency during the aging process is present, offering a challenge to healthcare practitioners.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Enfermagem em Educação e Saúde Comunitária, Centro de Graduação em Enfermagem, Universidade Federal do Triângulo Mineiro, Uberaba, MG. darlenetavares@netsite.com.br
authors.forename: Darlene Mara dos Santos
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Tavares
authors.forename: Fernanda Resende
authors.initials: FR
authors.lastname: Rodrigues
authors.forename: Cíntia Goulart Conrado
authors.initials: CG
authors.lastname: Silva
authors.forename: Sybelle de Souza
authors.initials: Sde S
authors.lastname: Castro Miranzi
mesh_terms: D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000368:Aged; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003920:Diabetes Mellitus / Q000628:therapy; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011788:Quality of Life