Published: August 21st 2023. The Conversation. Authors: Professor Rhiannon Owen, Population Data Science Research and Innovation Institute.
More than 25% of adults in the UK have two or more long-term health conditions. This increases to 65% for people older than 65 years, and to almost 82% for those aged 85 or older.
Our study assessed how a number of multiple long-term health conditions (psychosis, diabetes and congestive heart failure) develop over time, and what effect this can have on life expectancy. We chose these conditions because, together, they can lead to substantial reductions in how long someone lives.
We analysed the development of these conditions over a 20-year period for more than 1.6 million adults aged 25 and over. We used data held within the SAIL databank, which provides secure access to routinely collected anonymous health and administrative records for the population of Wales.