Risk factors associated with mortality in young and long-lived older adults in Florianópolis, SC, Brazil

Abstract This article aims to investigate risk factors associated with mortality in young (< 80 years) and long-lived (≥ 80 years) older adults in Florianópolis. A longitudinal population-based study of 1702 older adults participants of the EpiFloripa Ageing Study. Deaths were identified through searches in the Mortality Information System. The probability of survival was estimated using the Kaplan-Meier and Log-Rank methods. The effect of risk factors for mortality was evaluated using Cox Regression models, adjusted for gender, family income, leisure physical activity, depressive symptoms, functional disability, falls, smoking, cardiovascular disease, stroke, and diabetes mellitus. The overall survival probability was 89.9% and 52.6% for the young and long-lived older adults, respectively. For younger older adults, the risk of death was higher for males, ex-smokers and those with moderate/severe disability. For the long-lived older adults, only those with depressive symptoms had a higher risk of death. These results reveal different risk profiles of death among younger and older adults and the need for a differentiated look in the health care of this population.