Prevalence of mobility limitations among the elderly in Saudi Arabia

Mobility limitations in terms of walking and stair climbing among the elderly are associated with limitations in activities of daily living (ADL), higher annual healthcare expenditure, more hospitalizations, and increased mortality. However, evidence on the prevalence of mobility limitation among the elderly in Saudi Arabia remains limited. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate this issue using data from a national public survey. Data were obtained from the 2025 Elderly Survey, which was designed and administered by the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) of Saudi Arabia. Secondary analysis was applied. The survey included both Saudi and non-Saudi residents from 13 administrative regions across the kingdom (n = 32,745 households, which yielded a weighted national population of approximately 1,758,737 individuals). In total, 42% of the individuals were aged 60 to 64 years, and 25.5% of the individuals experienced mild difficulty in terms of mobility, specifically walking and climbing stairs, whereas 10.8% experienced severe difficulty. Furthermore, 61.8% of the individuals were not physically active. Additionally, 44.7% of the individuals had multiple chronic conditions, 25.5% had 1 chronic condition, and 29.8% had no chronic conditions. The survey data indicated that more than one-third of the elderly in Saudi Arabia have mild-to-severe mobility limitations in terms of walking and climbing stairs.