Monden Christiaan W S
Department of Sociology, Tilburg University, Tilburg, The Netherlands.
Eur J Public Health. 2005 Oct;15(5):498-503. doi: 10.1093/eurpub/cki019. Epub 2005 Jul 13.
Dramatic social changes took place in the Baltic States (Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania) in the 1990s. This study investigates the extent to which social variations in self-assessed health changed during that period.
Norbalt Living Conditions Survey I (1994) and II (1999) random population-based samples in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania were analysed. Associations of self-assessed health with six social dimensions (education, economic activity, car ownership, number of rooms, ethnicity and residence) were studied for males and females aged 25-74 years (n = 16 970).
Substantial and significant associations with poor health were found for education, economic activity, car ownership and, to a lesser extent, number of rooms. Ethnic differences were found only among women in Estonia. By and large, social variations in health were comparable for most indicators between the three countries. Differences in self-assessed health were stable between 1994 and 1999, except for the relatively worse position of the economically non-active in 1999.
Substantial social inequalities in self-assessed poor health exist in the Baltic States. Despite dramatic social changes taking place, social variations in self-assessed health have been rather stable in the second half of the 1990s. The economically non-active seem to have become more disadvantaged.
20世纪90年代，波罗的海国家（爱沙尼亚、拉脱维亚和立陶宛）发生了巨大的社会变革。本研究调查了在此期间自我评估健康状况的社会差异变化程度。
分析了爱沙尼亚、拉脱维亚和立陶宛基于随机抽样的诺尔巴特生活条件调查I（1994年）和II（1999年）的数据。研究了25至74岁（n = 16970）男性和女性自我评估健康状况与六个社会维度（教育、经济活动、汽车拥有量、房间数量、种族和居住地区）之间的关联。
发现教育、经济活动、汽车拥有量以及在较小程度上房间数量与健康状况不佳之间存在显著且重要的关联。仅在爱沙尼亚的女性中发现了种族差异。总体而言，三个国家在大多数指标上健康状况的社会差异具有可比性。1994年至1999年期间，自我评估健康状况的差异较为稳定，不过1999年经济不活跃人群的健康状况相对更差。
波罗的海国家在自我评估的健康状况不佳方面存在显著的社会不平等。尽管发生了巨大的社会变革，但在20世纪90年代后半期，自我评估健康状况的社会差异一直相当稳定。经济不活跃人群似乎变得更加弱势。
