Results
The proportion of 1801 older adults subjects
according to 6 regions of the country was 29.9%
from the northeastern region, 22.3% from the central
region, 17.7% from the southern region, 13.4% from
the northern region, 10.3% from the eastern region
and 6.4% from the western region. The mean and range
of age were 69.26 + 6.21 and 60-98 years with female to
male ratio of 898: 903 or 1: 1.006. Around sixty five
percent were married while 30.7% were widowed.
Among the widowed group, more than three-quarters
(76.9%) were elderly females. The actual number of the
family members living in the same house was 3.7 + 2.2
people and only 0.8% lived alone. The majority (76.4%)
stayed with their children, followed by staying with
grandchildren (65.5%) and staying with their spouses
(59.3%). As far as the education was concerned, the
majority (59.3%) achieved only primary school or lower
and up to 11.1% had never attended a formal class in
school. The majority had past occupations in agriculture
50.7%, 18.6% were retired government officials.
65.1% revealed their financial status to be fair, 13.5%
had some savings while 20.8% were not able to make
ends meet.
The most common chronic diseases listed
in order were joint pain 30.8%, hypertension 23.9%,
diabetes mellitus 13.2%, dyspnea on exertion 14.0%,
sleeping difficulty 14.0%, memory impairment 11.5%,