Factors associated with worsening in the self-rated health status of Brazilian women who lived with dependent elderly people during the first wave of COVID-19

Abstract The objective is to analyze the factors associated with the worsening of the self-rated health (SRH) of Brazilian women who live with elderly people with functional dependence (EFD) during the first wave of COVID-19. ConVid - Behavior Research was used as a data source. For the analysis, the group of women who lived with EFD was compared with those who lived with the elderly without any dependence. Hierarchical prevalence ratio (PR) models were estimated to test the associations between sociodemographic characteristics, changes in income, routine activities and health in the pandemic, with the outcome of worsening SRH. This worsening was more frequent in the group of women living with EFD. After adjusting for hierarchical factors, being black (PR=0.76; 95%CI 0.60-0.96) and having a per capita income lower than minimum wage (PR=0.78; 95%CI 0.64- 0.96) were shown to be protective factors for SRH worsening among EFD co-residents. Indisposition, emergence/worsening of back problems, affected sleep, poor SRH, feeling loneliness and difficulty in carrying out routine activities during the pandemic were positively associated factors. The study demonstrates that living with EFD was associated with a worsening in the health status of Brazilian women during the pandemic, especially among those of higher social status.