Institute of Medical Information/Library, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing, China.
Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, China.
Front Public Health. 2023 Jun 1;11:1186248. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2023.1186248. eCollection 2023.
Chronic comorbidity has become a major challenge in chronic disease prevention and control. This issue is particularly pronounced in rural areas of developing countries, where the prevalence of chronic disease comorbidity is high, especially among middle-aged and older adults populations. However, the health status of middle-aged and older adults individuals in rural areas of China has received inadequate attention. Therefore, it is crucial to investigate the correlation among chronic diseases to establish a reference basis for adjusting health policies aimed at promoting the prevention and management of chronic diseases among middle-aged and older adults individuals.
This study selected 2,262 middle-aged and older adults residents aged 50 years or older in Shangang Village, Jiangsu Province, China, as the study population. To analyze the chronic comorbidity of middle-aged and older adults residents with different characteristics, we used the test with SPSS statistical software. Data analysis was conducted using the Apriori algorithm of Python software, set to mine the strong association rules of positive correlation between chronic disease comorbidities of middle-aged and older adults residents.
The prevalence of chronic comorbidity was 56.6%. The chronic disease comorbidity group with the highest prevalence rate was the lumbar osteopenia + hypertension group. There were significant differences in the prevalence of chronic disease comorbidity among middle-aged and older adults residents in terms of gender, BMI, and chronic disease management. The Apriori algorithm was used to screen 15 association rules for the whole population, 11 for genders, and 15 for age groups. According to the order of support, the most common association rules of comorbidity of three chronic diseases were: {lumbar osteopenia} → {hypertension} (support: 29.22%, confidence: 58.44%), {dyslipidemia} → {hypertension} (support: 19.14%, confidence: 65.91%) and {fatty liver} → {hypertension} (support: 17.82%, confidence: 64.17%).
The prevalence of chronic comorbidity among middle-aged and older adults rural residents in China is relatively high. We identified many association rules among chronic diseases, dyslipidemia is mostly the antecedent, and hypertension is primarily the result. In particular, the majority of comorbidity aggregation patterns consisted of hypertension and dyslipidemia. By implementing scientifically-proven prevention and control strategies, the development of healthy aging can be promoted.
慢性共病已成为慢性病防控的一大挑战。在发展中国家的农村地区，这一问题尤为突出，慢性病共病的患病率较高，尤其是中老年人群。然而，中国农村中老年人群的健康状况尚未得到足够重视。因此，有必要研究慢性病之间的相关性，为调整旨在促进中老年人群慢性病预防和管理的健康政策提供参考依据。
本研究选取江苏省尚岗村 2262 名 50 岁及以上的中老年居民作为研究对象。采用 SPSS 统计软件的卡方检验分析不同特征中老年居民的慢性共病情况。运用 Python 软件 Apriori 算法挖掘中老年居民慢性病共病的强关联规则，分析正相关。
慢性共病的患病率为 56.6%。共病患病率最高的是腰椎骨质疏松+高血压组。不同性别、BMI、慢性病管理的中老年居民慢性共病患病率差异有统计学意义。运用 Apriori 算法对全人群共筛选出 15 条关联规则，对男女分别筛选出 11 条，对年龄组分别筛选出 15 条。按支持度排序，共病三种慢性病最常见的关联规则为：{腰椎骨质疏松}→{高血压}（支持度：29.22%，置信度：58.44%）、{血脂异常}→{高血压}（支持度：19.14%，置信度：65.91%）和{脂肪肝}→{高血压}（支持度：17.82%，置信度：64.17%）。
中国农村中老年居民慢性共病的患病率相对较高。本研究发现了许多慢性病之间的关联规则，血脂异常多为前因，高血压多为结果。特别是，大多数共病聚集模式由高血压和血脂异常组成。通过实施科学的预防和控制策略，可以促进健康老龄化的发展。
