Large variation in predictors of mortality by levels of self-rated health : Results from an 18-year follow-up study

• Objectives: To analyze the variation in factors associated with mortality risk at different levels of self-rated health (SRH).Study design: Retrospective cohort study.Methods: Cox regression analysis was used to examine the association between mortality and demographic, socioeconomic and health-related predictors for respondents with good, average, and poor SRH in a longitudinal data set from Estonia with up to 18 years of follow-up time.Results: In respondents with good SRH, male sex, older age, lower income, manual occupation, ever smoking, and heavy alcohol consumption predicted higher mortality. These covariates, together with marital status, illness-related limitations, and underweight predicted mortality in respondents with average SRH. For poor SRH, only being never married and having illness-related limitations predicted mortality risk in addition to older age and male sex.Conclusions: The predictors of all-cause mortality are not universal but depend on the level of SRH. The higher mortality of respondents with poor SRH could to a large extent be attributed to health problems, whereas in the case of average or good SRH, factors other than the presence of illness explained outcome mortality.

Subject headings

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP  -- Sociologi (hsv//swe)

SOCIAL SCIENCES  -- Sociology (hsv//eng)

Keyword

Self-rated health

Mortality

Health concepts

Estonia

Östersjö- och Östeuropaforskning

Baltic and East European studies

Publication and Content Type

ref (subject category)

art (subject category)