Zhongguo quanke yixue (Apr 2023)
The Prevalence of Dysphagia among Chinese Older Adults: a Meta-analysis
Abstract
Background Considering that our country has entered an aging society, the health problems of the older people has evolved into a concern due to the association with a variety of diseases. In recent years, Chinese households and society have suffered a serious economic burden due to the increasing prevalence of dysphagia among the elderly. Objective The purpose of this study is to evaluate the prevalence of dysphagia in the elderly in China systematically. Methods PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, Cochrane Library, CNKI, VIP, Wanfang Data, and China Biomedical Literature Database were searched for epidemiological studies related to the prevalence of dysphagia in the elderly in China. Searches were conducted from database inception to May 2022. Two researchers were responsible for screening literature and extracting data according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria. The AHRQ scale was used to evaluate the quality of cross-sectional studies. Meta-analysis was performed with Stata 15.0 software. Results A total of 22 articles were analyzed, containing 308 289 patients, including 47 940 patients with dysphagia. Meta-analysis revealed that the prevalence of dysphagia in the elderly in China was 66.0%〔95%CI (58.0%, 73.0%) 〕. According to subgroup analysis, among elderly Chinese males and females dysphagia was prevalent in 38.0%〔95%CI (31.0%, 45.0%) 〕 and 38.0%〔95%CI (29.0%, 46.0%) 〕 of cases, respectively. The prevalence of dysphagia was 21.0%〔95 %CI (13.0%, 29.0%) 〕 in 60-69 years old, 28.0%〔95%CI (18.0%, 37.0%) 〕 in those aged 70-79, and 41.0%〔95%CI (31.0%, 50.0%) 〕 in those aged more than 80. In primary, secondary, and technical secondary school, and college and up, dysphagia was observed in 28.0%〔95%CI (20.0%, 35.0%) 〕, 32.0%〔95%CI (17.0%, 53.0%) 〕, 30.0%〔95%CI (18.0%, 42.0%) 〕 of the elderly. The prevalence of elderly dysphagia was 68.0% in the hospital〔95%CI (52.0%, 85.0%) 〕, 56.0%〔95%CI (41.0%, 71.0%) 〕 in the nursing home and 76.0%〔95%CI (56.0%, 97.0%) 〕 in the community. According to the Kubota Drinking Test, 32.0%〔95%CI (21.0%, 43.0%) 〕 of the elderly suffer from dysphagia, 41.0%〔95%CI (16.0%, 66.0%) 〕 exprience it according to the EAT-10 scale, and 35.0%〔95%CI (14.0%, 56.0%) 〕 suffer from it according to the Water Swallowing Test scale. Conclusion The prevalence of dysphagia among the elderly in China is 66.0%〔95%CI (58.0%, 73.0%) 〕. The prevalence of dysphagia among those≥80 years old, those with secondary school and technical secondary school education, elderly care in community, and those with dysphagia diagnosed by the EAT-10 scale is high. In order to improve the quality of life and reduce the prevalence of dysphagia among the elderly, we must pay more attention to and understand elderly dysphagia early.
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