ERIC Number: EJ1188812
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2016
Pages: 5
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: EISSN-1469-9532
EISSN: N/A
The Prevalence of Intellectual Disability among 1-Year Cohorts of Finnish Elderly as Determined with the Multiple Register Method
Westerinen, Hannu; Kaski, Markus; Virta, Lauri J.; Almqvist, Fredrik; Kautiainen, Hannu; Iivanainen, Matti
Journal of Intellectual & Developmental Disability, v41 n3 p267-271 2016
Background: Longevity is increasing among persons with intellectual disability (ID) simultaneously with that of the general population. There is a need to update prevalence figures of ID among the elderly. The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence of ID among the elderly in Finland. Method: We combined data from 8 national health and social benefits registers to calculate the ID prevalence for age cohorts separated by 1-year intervals. We corrected a discontinuity due to loss of diagnostic information in the main registers at retirement age (65 years) by comparing the age distribution to that of the entire population. Results: The distribution correction more than doubled the number of persons with ID in this age group, resulting in an apparent prevalence of 0.75%. Conclusions: The 1-year interval between age cohorts proved useful in detecting discontinuities and permitted estimation. The new estimate for the prevalence of ID among the elderly is higher than those previously published, but congruent with the increasing life expectancy of elderly persons with ID.
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Finland
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A