Table 1.
Characteristics of Community-Dwelling Participants of the Framingham Heart Study by Sex (n=220)
| Women (n=147) n (%) |
Men (n=73) n (%) |
p-value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Demographic Characteristics | |||
| Age at interview, mean ± SD | 88.3 ± 3.4 | 87.8 ± 3.1 | .277 |
| Education | |||
| Less than high school graduate | 32 (22) | 19 (26) | |
| High school graduate | 64 (44) | 29 (40) | |
| More than high school | 48 (33) | 26 (34) | .789 |
| Place of residence | |||
| Private residence | 111 (76) | 58 (79) | |
| Other (e.g. assisted living) | 36 (24) | 15 (21) | .514 |
| Social Support | |||
| Marital status | |||
| Married | 21 (14) | 41 (58) | |
| Widow | 111 (76) | 29 (41) | |
| Other | 15 (10) | 1 (1) | <.001 |
| Living situation | |||
| Lives alone | 87 (60) | 22 (31) | |
| Lives with someone | 59 (40) | 50 (69) | <.001 |
| Has someone to listen | |||
| None of the time | 7 (5) | 1 (2) | |
| Some of the time | 43 (30) | 22 (32) | |
| All of the time | 91 (65) | 45 (66) | .536 |
| Has someone to provide emotional support and help make difficult decisions |
|||
| None of the time | 6 (4) | 3 (4) | |
| Some of the time | 20 (14) | 15 (22) | |
| All of the time | 114 (81) | 52 (74) | .353 |
| Clinical Characteristics | |||
| History of | |||
| Cancer | 39 (27) | 26 (36) | .164 |
| Coronary heart disease | 38 (26) | 29 (40) | .035 |
| Stroke | 10 (7) | 17 (23) | <.001 |
| Intermittent claudication | 12 (9) | 12 (16) | .095 |
| Congestive heart failure | 14 (10) | 9 (12) | .522 |
| Diabetes | 18 (12) | 11 (15) | .560 |
| Hip fracture | 17 (12) | 2 (3) | .039 |
| Number of comorbid illnesses | |||
| None | 56 (38) | 13 (18) | |
| 1 | 48 (33) | 26 (36) | |
| 2 | 29 (20) | 23 (31) | |
| 3 or more | 14 (9) | 11 (15) | .002 |
| Perceived health | |||
| Excellent | 25 (17) | 12 (17) | |
| Good | 95 (66) | 45 (62) | |
| Fair/poor | 24 (17) | 15 (21) | .571 |
| Perceived chance of taking care of self in 12 months |
|||
| 90% or better | 81 (55) | 39 (54) | |
| about 75% | 19 (13) | 19 (26) | |
| 50% or worse | 37 (26) | 12 (17) | |
| Unsure | 9 (6) | 2 (3) | .053 |
| Perceived chance of living 12 months or longer |
|||
| 90% or better | 85 (55) | 43 (60) | |
| about 75% | 11 (7) | 11 (15) | |
| 50% or worse | 39( 27) | 13 (18) | |
| Unsure | 12 (8) | 5 (7) | .211 |
| CES-D* Score ≥ 16, indicating significant depressive symptoms |
|||
| No | 119 (82) | 64 (89) | |
| Yes | 27 (18) | 8 (11) | .176 |
| Cognitive status, MMSE Score†† | |||
| < 24 | 132 (90) | 66 (90) | |
| ≥ 24 | 15 (10) | 7 (10) | .886 |
| ADL† dependencies | |||
| None | 128 (87) | 65 (89) | |
| 1 or more | 19 (13) | 8 (11) | ..676 |
| Uses assistive device to perform ADL† |
|||
| No | 49 (33) | 32 (44) | |
| Yes | 98 (67) | 41 (56) | .120 |
| Ability to walk a half mile without help |
57 (39) | 20 (28) | |
| Able | 63 (44) | 43 (60) | |
| Unable | 25 (17) | 9 (12) | .078 |
| Doesn’t do | |||
| Health care use since last exam | |||
| Had check up by doctor | 141 (97) | 70 (96) | 1.00 |
| Illness visit to doctor | |||
| No visit | 96 (65) | 39 (53) | |
| 1 | 29 (20) | 24 (33) | |
| 2 or more | 22 (15) | 10 (14) | .314 |
| Hospitalization | |||
| None | 97 (66) | 35 (48) | |
| 1 | 28 (19) | 24 (33) | |
| 2 or more | 22 (15) | 14 (19) | .041 |
| Had nursing home stay | 18 (12) | 9 (12) | .986 |
*
CES-D = Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale.
††
MMSE = Mini-Mental Status Exam
†
ADL = Activities of daily living.
Number of observations with missing data — education (n=3); marital status (n=2); living alone (n=2); having someone to listen to you (n=11); having someone to provide emotional support and help make difficult decisions (n=10); perceived ability to take care of self (n=2); perception of living 12 months or longer (n=1); CES-D (n=2); ADLs (n=1); ability to walk a half mile without help (n=3); Interim check up by doctor (n=1).