Functioning and associated factors in older adult users of primary health care

ABSTRACT Population aging is a major challenge for public health, society, and policymakers worldwide. This challenge becomes increasingly complex in developing countries. Our research evaluated the functioning and factors associated with clinical and sociodemographic aspects of older adult users of Primary Health Care in Fortaleza city. A cross-sectional analytical study was conducted using the World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule (WHODAS 2.0) to measure functioning. Mann-Whitney and Kruskall-Wallis tests were employed for bivariate analyses, along with negative binomial regression for multivariate analysis. Age was associated with the loss of functioning across all WHODAS 2.0 domains (p<0.01). Respondents who presented clinical decompensation related to any comorbidity performed worse in the self-care (p<0.05), school and work activities (p<0.05), life activities (p<0.05), participation (p<0.05), and total domains (p<0.01). Our findings reinforce the key role of Primary Health Care as a strategic space to preserve functioning in the older adult population.