Health and Care Characteristics of Ageing Adults With Profound Intellectual and Multiple Disabilities Living in French Facilities
Marie‐Christine Rousseau, Any Beltran Anzola, Houria El Ouazzani, Ilyes Hamouda, Sibylle Del Duca, Maryam Fouladvand, Souad Loukkal, Thierry Billette de Villemeur, Pascal Auquier, Karine Baumstarck,ABSTRACT
Background
Life expectancy among individuals with Profound Intellectual and Multiple Disabilities/Polyhandicap (PIMD/PLH) has increased, making information essential for age‐appropriate care. This study compared health characteristics and care use between younger and older adults with PIMD/PLH in institutions.
Methods
This cross‐sectional study used data from the French PIMD/PLH cohort. Inclusion criteria were (i) age > 3 years; (ii) PIMD/PLH diagnosis. Data on health characteristics and health care consumption were included. Adults were compared by age (≤ 45 vs. > 45 years).
Results
Mean age was 34.5 ± 6.0 in the younger group and 55 ± 5.9 in the older group. While overall polyhandicap severity was similar, older adults exhibited a greater dependency level. Gastroesophageal reflux and symptomatic osteoporosis were more prevalent in the younger group; dental disorders, chronic pain, and sleep disorders predominated in the older group. Older adults received less medical and paramedical care.
Conclusions
This study highlights the need for lifelong medical and rehabilitative care in PIMD/PLH.
Trial Registration
ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT02400528