Awang Halimah, Mansor Norma, Nai Peng Tey, Nik Osman Nik Ainoon
1 Social Security Research Centre, University of Malaya, Malaysia.
2 Faculty of Economics and Administration, University of Malaya, Malaysia.
J Int Med Res. 2018 Jan;46(1):175-184. doi: 10.1177/0300060517710857. Epub 2017 Jul 31.
Objectives Ageing is often associated with deteriorating mental and physical health and the need for long-term care, creating a fear of ageing. We investigated what people fear most in terms of disabling chronic diseases and their concerns regarding having long-term illnesses. Methods Data were obtained from an online survey of 518 respondents aged 40 years and older residing in Malaysia, which was based on a convenience sample collected in May 2015 to January 2016. Data were analyzed using chi-squared tests and multinomial logistic regression. Results Of the most dreaded diseases, heart disease and cancer are life-threatening; however, dementia, diabetes, and hypertension persist and have a disabling effect for a long time. While there were variations in the diseases feared most across sex, ethnicity, and place of residence, the biggest worry for all respondents with regard to having a long-term illness was that they would become a burden to their family, a concern that superseded fear of dying. Conclusions We found our survey respondents had a fear of chronic diseases and placing a burden on others. Thus, there is a need to provide motivation for people to adopt a healthy lifestyle, to remain healthy.
目标 衰老往往与身心健康恶化以及长期护理需求相关联，从而引发对衰老的恐惧。我们调查了人们在致残性慢性病方面最害怕的是什么，以及他们对患有长期疾病的担忧。方法 数据来自对马来西亚518名40岁及以上居民的在线调查，该调查基于2015年5月至2016年1月收集的便利样本。使用卡方检验和多项逻辑回归分析数据。结果 在最可怕的疾病中，心脏病和癌症危及生命；然而，痴呆症、糖尿病和高血压持续存在并长期具有致残作用。虽然在不同性别、种族和居住地区最害怕的疾病存在差异，但所有受访者对患有长期疾病的最大担忧是他们会成为家人的负担，这种担忧超过了对死亡的恐惧。结论 我们发现参与调查的受访者害怕慢性病以及给他人带来负担。因此，有必要激励人们采取健康的生活方式以保持健康。
