Fatores associados à qualidade de vida de Idosos de um Centro de Referência, em Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais

Abstract

Population aging is a worldwide phenomenon. However, longevity provides us with an ambiguous living situation, that is, the wish to live more and more and, at the same time, the fear of living with disability. Thus, challenges related to the promotion of quality of life emerge, along with the factors that collaborate for maintaining active aging. Objective: To analyze the facts associated with quality of life among the elderly attending a reference center, in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais. Methodology: Transversal study, with a sample of 257 elderly people aged 60 or more from a reference center, in Belo Horizonte. For collecting data, the WHOQOL-bref instrument was used for evaluating the quality of life, added by a questionnaire containing socio-demographic, economical, clinical and behavioral aspects. Data were inserted, typed and analyzed using the software SPSS 20.0. Statistical analysis consisted of descriptive analysis, including all the variables in the study, univariate and multivariate logistic regression Forward, with the level of significance (p) established at 0,05. The analysis was rationalized through the definition of two groups: good quality of life, for those who were satisfied or very satisfied, considering their quality of life good or very good (G1); bad quality of life, for those who were neither satisfied nor dissatisfied, dissatisfied, or very dissatisfied, considering their quality of life as neither good nor bad, bad or very bad (G2). Results: Most elderly people in the sample are female (82,5%), from the countryside of Minas Gerais (60,9%), with no spouse (63,8%), catholic (72,4%) and literate (89,9%). The same proportion was found with people from 60 to 69 years of age and 70 and 79 years of age (44,7%). 22,6% were currently employed, 80,2% were retired and 40,2% had an income of one to three times the minimum wage. 88,3% had their own house, all subjects presented adequate basic sanitary conditions, and 79,8% did not live alone. 90,2% claimed to suffer with health issues, hypertension being the most prevalent one (63,7%), dyslipidemia (26,5%), Diabetes Mellitus (23,7%), musculoskeletal and connective system diseases (23,7%) and depression (17,9%). They took at least one medication (84,8%), with emphasis to antihypertensives (59,7%), lipid-lowerings (22,5%), oral hypoglycemic agents (21,7%), and diuretics (21,3%). 9,5% claimed to consume alcoholic beverages, 3,9% currently smoked and 31,9% were ex-smokers. 92,6% claimed they practiced some kind of exercise, 63% doing so one to three times a week. In addition, 77,8% of the elderly considered their quality of life good or very good, 75,1% were satisfied or very satisfied with their health. The aspect in WHOQOL-bref with the worst score was the environment, with an average of 14,44. The factors associated significantly with the quality of life were: being from the countryside of Minas Gerais; carrying five or more comorbidities; having a disease of the respiratory system; positive family history for hypertension; PHQ-2 total with a score equal to or higher than three; frequency of physical exercise from one to three times a week and from four to seven times a week. Conclusion: The elderly face several difficulties that compromise their quality of life, considering that the term itself is extremely wide and subjective. Therefore, guaranteeing an active and healthy aging process is a big challenge, aim of several intersected public policies. The study was relevant for understanding the population of the reference center, being thus essential the establishment of a longitudinal local research.