A National Population Study of the Co-Occurrence of Multiple Long-Term Conditions in People With Multimorbidity, Denmark, 2013

Description:
The objective of this study was to describe the prevalence of pairwise combinations of 17 long-term conditions. Data were obtained from a national, representative population-based study including 162,283 Danish citizens aged 16 years or older. We calculated the prevalence of each long-term condition given the presence of another long-term condition. Compared with the general population, people with angina pectoris had more than twice the odds of having 12 of the 16 other long-term conditions, and inversely, people with cancer, tinnitus, or cataracts did not have notably higher odds for any of the other long-term conditions.

How to cite:

Friis K, Pedersen MH, Larsen FB, Lasgaard M. A National Population Study of the Co-Occurrence of Multiple Long-Term Conditions in People With Multimorbidity, Denmark, 2013. Prev Chronic Dis 2016;13:150404. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5888/pcd13.150404.

Objective

The study objective was to describe the prevalence of pairwise combinations of 17 self-reported long-term conditions. Research on chronic disease clusters at the population level is scarce despite the fact that multiple diseases tend to compound and interact (1). Such research demands large samples, because possible combinations of long-term conditions are numerous, and the occurrence of some diseases is rare. Furthermore, most research on the clustering of diseases includes only the elderly population (2–5). Studies of combinations of long-term conditions are relevant to clinical practice guideline committees who define the standard of care for single conditions and comorbidities.

 

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