Multimorbidity Among Adults Aged 50 and Over in Europe and Israel: Prevalence and Associated Factors From SHARE Wave 9.

OBJECTIVES

This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of and identify factors associated with multimorbidity among adults aged 50 years or older living in 27 European countries and Israel.

DESIGN

Cross-sectional, population-based study using data from the 9th wave (2022) of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE).

SETTING AND

PARTICIPANTS

Community-dwelling adults aged 50 years and older living in 27 European countries and Israel.

METHODS

A total of 68,593 participants were included. Multimorbidity was defined as the self-reported presence of 2 or more chronic diseases. Statistical analyses were performed using Poisson regression with robust variance.

RESULTS

The overall prevalence of multimorbidity was 37.9%, with substantial variation across countries. In the multivariable analysis, multimorbidity was associated with female sex [prevalence ratio (PR), 1.13; 95% CI, 1.08-1.18], older age (PR, 2.05; 95% CI, 1.86-2.24), low educational level (PR, 1.06; 95% CI, 1.00-1.12), tobacco use (PR, 1.15; 95% CI, 1.10-1.34), and alcohol consumption (PR, 0.95; 95% CI, 0.91-0.99). Higher prevalence also was observed among individuals with poor self-rated health (PR, 2.34; CI, 2.21-2.47), obesity (PR, 1.80; 95% CI, 1.53-2.11), functional limitations (PR, 2.04; 95% CI, 1.91-2.18), severe loneliness (PR, 1.29; 95% CI, 1.21-1.37), and low quality of life (PR, 1.36; 95% CI, 1.34-1.51).

CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: The high prevalence and cross-country differences highlight the complexity of multimorbidity among adults aged 50 years and older in Europe and Israel. The findings reinforce the influence of demographic, clinical, and lifestyle factors and emphasize the need for public policies promoting healthy aging and integrated health care.