Introduction:

Increase in the number of older adults is a current worldwide tendency. Colombia is not an exception.

Objective:

Determine the chronic health conditions associated to the development of disability in older adults from the city of Santiago de Cali, Colombia.

Methods:

A cross-sectional study was conducted of 322 older adults selected by proportional stratified random sampling. Data were obtained with the survey Health, Wellbeing and Aging Colombia, section 8, and the tool WHODAS 2.0, 36-item version.

Results:

Of the participants in the study, 90.4% were women; mean age was 70 years. Mean global disability was 9.39 ± 10.2 points. Mobility obtained the highest score (13.80 ± 17.79 on a 0-100 scale), whereas the lowest ranking variables were ADL - paid work and participation (2.240 ± 11.15 points). Arterial hypertension was the most common condition. Patients who had had embolisms reported the highest level of disability (18.395), followed by those reporting having had some sort of mental disorder (14.15%). The domain with the greatest statistical significance was participation, which was more affected in adults with diabetes, heart attacks, cerebral embolism, arthritis, osteoporosis and cataract.

Conclusions:

A presence was observed of chronic diseases of the cardiovascular, respiratory and musculoskeletal systems, though low disability levels were reported. The most complex activities of daily living are the first to present difficulty. On the other hand, mobility is crucial for the functioning of older adults.

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