Leventhal E A, Leventhal H, Schaefer P, Easterling D
Institute for Health, Health Care Policy and Aging Research, Rutgers University.
J Gerontol. 1993 Mar;48(2):P78-86. doi: 10.1093/geronj/48.2.p78.
This study examined age differences in the timing of the decision to seek medical care. Two cohorts, one of middle-aged (40 to 55 years, n = 88) and one of older patients (65 and over, n = 80), who sought medical care when symptomatic were interviewed at the time of their visit. Age differences were examined with respect to total delay (the time from first noticing symptoms until calling for care), as well as its two constituent phases: appraisal delay (symptom onset until deciding one was ill) and illness delay (decision one was ill until calling for care). Older persons were expected to be more conserving of physical and psychic resources, and thus quicker in seeking care. The cohort effect was expected to be most visible for symptoms judged to be of uncertain seriousness. The delay results and ancillary findings on reasons given for delay are generally supportive of the hypotheses, with the caveat that the cohort difference also reflects higher levels of avoidance behavior by the middle-aged than by the older subjects.
本研究调查了寻求医疗护理决策时机方面的年龄差异。对两个队列进行了研究，一个队列是中年患者（40至55岁，n = 88），另一个队列是老年患者（65岁及以上，n = 80），这些有症状时寻求医疗护理的患者在就诊时接受了访谈。研究考察了总延迟时间（从首次注意到症状到呼叫医疗护理的时间）方面的年龄差异，以及总延迟时间的两个组成阶段：评估延迟（症状出现到判定自己生病的时间）和患病延迟（判定自己生病到呼叫医疗护理的时间）。预计老年人会更节省体力和精神资源，因此会更快地寻求医疗护理。对于被判定严重程度不确定的症状，队列效应预计最为明显。延迟结果以及关于延迟原因的辅助性发现总体上支持这些假设，但需注意的是，队列差异也反映出中年患者比老年患者有更高水平的回避行为。
