Prevalence and Potential Determinants of Chronic Lung Diseases Among Middle Aged and Older Adults: Evidence from Longitudinal Aging Study in India
Methods: We have used the Longitudinal Ageing Study in India conducted in 2017–2018 across all the states and union territories in India. This study included the data of 66,269 participants aged 45 and above. The outcome variables for this study are two chronic lung diseases namely; COPD/Chronic Bronchitis and Asthma. Multinomial logistic regression has been used to explore the factors associated with chronic lung diseases.
Results: We found that significant proportion (5.8%) of middle aged and older adults are diagnosed with lung diseases. Out of the total, 4.3% were diagnosed with Asthma, and 1.5% were diagnosed with COPD/Chronic Bronchitis. The relative risk ratio (RRR) of Asthma (RRR:1.49, CI:1.32 to 1.67) was higher among older adults (65 years and above). The presence of comorbidity significantly increased the risk of Asthma (RRR: 1.21, CI: 1.11 to 1.33) and COPD/Chronic Bronchitis (RRR: 1.46, CI: 1.27 to 1.67). Older adults who had quit smoking were more likely to suffer from Asthma (RRR:1.51, CI: 1.28 to 1.77) and COPD/Chronic Bronchitis (RRR: 1.62, CI:1.29 to 2.05) than who never smoked. The risk of Asthma was also higher among those who reported symptoms like shortness of breath (RRR: 3.56, CI: 3.20 to 3.97) and cough with or without phlegm (RRR: 2.67, CI: 2.42 to 2.96).
Conclusion: This study found that age, sex, education level, smoking behaviours, pain or discomfort in chest, shortness of breath while awake, cough with or without phlegm, co-morbidity and self-rated health were significantly associated with COPD/Chronic Bronchitis and Asthma among the respondents.