Hearing, mobility, and pain predict mortality: a longitudinal population-based study

OBJECTIVE: Measures of health-related quality of life (HRQL), including the Health Utilities Index Mark 3 (HUI3) are predictive of mortality. HUI3 includes eight attributes, vision, hearing, speech, ambulation, dexterity, cognition, emotion, and pain and discomfort, with five or six levels per attribute that vary from no to severe disability. This study examined associations between individual HUI3 attributes and mortality. STUDY DESIGN AND SETTING: Baseline data and 12 years of follow-up data from a closed longitudinal cohort study, the 1994/95 Canadian National Population Health Survey, consisting of 12,375 women and men aged 18 and older. A priori hypotheses were that ambulation, cognition, emotion, and pain would predict mortality. Cox proportional hazards regression models were applied controlling for standard determinants of health and risk factors. RESULTS: Single-attribute utility scores for ambulation (hazard ratio [HR]=0.10; 0.04-0.22), hearing (HR=0.18; 0.06-0.57), and pain (HR=0.53; 0.29-0.96) were statistically significantly associated with an increased risk of mortality; ambulation and hearing were predictive for the 60+ cohort. CONCLUSION: Few studies have identified hearing or pain as risk factors for mortality. This study is innovative because it identifies specific components of HRQL that predict mortality. Further research is needed to understand better the mechanisms through which deficits in hearing and pain affect mortality risks.