Abstract

SANCHEZ PADILLA, Luis Manuel; GONZALEZ PEREZ, Ubaldo; ALERM GONZALEZ, Alina  and  BACALLAO GALLESTEY, Jorge. Psychological quality of life and physical health in elderly individuals. Rev haban cienc méd [online]. 2014, vol.13, n.2, pp. 337-349. ISSN 1729-519X.

Introduction: Good psychological health may reduce the effect of diseases in old age. Objective: to assess the possible association between the psychological quality of life and the physical function in the elderly. Material and methods: one hundred thirty one women and 59 men with an average age of 76 years accepted to participate and were included. Five questionnaires were used that explored Quality of Physical and Psychological Life. An exploratory factor analysis was performed which included physical and psychological variables as well as synthetic variables that summarized the scales in the instruments. Sex differences were also assessed. Results: the factor analysis yielded three factors that clearly reveal lack of association between the physical and the psychological dimensions. The geriatric evaluation was less favorable in women. Conclusions: these results suggest that in old people may have high scores in the psychological dimension of quality of life despite low scores in the psychical function associated to diseases. This fact supports the need for strategies aimed at the psycho-affective aspects of life and not only at the biological aspects.

Keywords : Physic and psychic Quality of Life; elderly; third age.

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