Citation

Pagotto V, Bachion MM, Silveira EA. Rev. Panam. Salud Publica 2013; 33(4): 302-310.

Vernacular Title

Autoavaliação da saúde por idosos brasileiros: revisão sistemática da literatura.

Affiliation

Faculdade de Enfermagem, Universidade Federal de Goiás, Goiânia, GO, Brasil.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2013, Organizacion Panamericana de la Salud (PAHO))

DOI

unavailable

PMID

23698180

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To conduct a systematic review of the literature on self-assessment of health status in the elderly population. METHODS: Medline and LILACS were searched following the Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) methodology. Original articles on self-assessment of health status conducted with older Brazilians were selected. The following were examined: general characteristics of the studies, the prevalence of negative self-assessment of health, the factors associated with this negative self-assessment, the question used to inquire about health status and response categories. RESULTS: Of 97 studies identified, 11 met the inclusion criteria. Variations between the studies regarding the formulation of the question and answer choices were identified. The prevalence of negative health self-assessment ranged from 12.6 to 51.9% between studies. The most usual dependent variables associated with negative self-assessment of health were the presence of disease, number of medications, monthly family/household income, hospitalizations, medical office visits, difficulty/inability to perform activities of daily living, presence of depressive and anxiety symptoms, and complaints of insomnia. CONCLUSIONS: The heterogeneity of factors associated with a negative self-evaluation indicates that the health of older individuals is defined by determinants that fall within a broad view of health. The standardization of questions and answers for research on self-assessment of health in older people is recommended, since this information will produce knowledge and allow monitoring and comparison of results, and will therefore be useful in guiding decision-making regarding the formulation of health policies for Brazil and Latin America.

Language: pt