Five-year survival rate among older adults participating in the national geriatric screening program: A South Korean population-based cohort study

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: This study aimed to assess the health benefits of a geriatric screening program comprising of physical function tests, screening questionnaires for depression and cognitive impairment, and bone mineral density measurements for women as a part of the National Screening Program for Transitional Ages (NSPTA). We compared the all-cause mortality between subjects who did and did not participate in the screening program. METHODS: This was a nationwide longitudinal study with a 5-year follow-up based on a 10% sample of the National Health Insurance beneficiaries aged 60 years and older. Mortality records were obtained from the qualification dataset in the elderly cohort database of 2005-2013 provided by the National Health Insurance Service. A Cox proportional hazards model was used to analyze the mortality risk. We sampled 11,986 subjects each in the screened (intervention) and non-screened (control) groups after exact matching using propensity score. RESULTS: After adjusting for demographic and socioeconomic characteristics (age, sex, household income, smoking, alcohol drinking, physical activity, body mass index, and the Charlson Comorbidity Index), all-cause mortality rates were found to be significantly lower (a) in the intervention group compared to the control group (hazard ratio = 0.73: 95% confidence interval: 0.65, 0.82) and (b) among women compared to men (hazard ratio = 0.50: 95% confidence interval: 0.44, 0.56). Lower hazard ratios were also observed among those with a higher body mass index, fewer comorbidities, and higher income. CONCLUSION: A nationwide geriatric screening program might be helpful in reducing the incidence of premature deaths among older people.