Change in quality of life among community-dwelling older adults: population-based longitudinal study

Purpose This population-based study aimed to determine 5-year change in multidimensional QoL among community-dwelling older people, and to identify predictors of QoL change among demographic, socioeconomic, and health characteristics. Methods Data of the 2011 and 2016 annual assessments of 1845 older men and women (age range 68–77 years) from the Lc65 + cohort study were used. QoL was assessed using a 28-item instrument yielding a QoL overall score and seven domain-specific QoL subscores. Additional ratings of QoL included a single item (excellent; very good; good; fair; poor), expected QoL in 1 year (better; worse; same as today), and retrospective assessment of QoL 5-year change (better; worse; same as 5 years ago). The predictors of 5-year change in the QoL score were assessed using linear regression, controlling for baseline QoL score. Results All prospective and retrospective indicators of QoL converged towards a slight deterioration over 5 years. QoL subscores significantly decreased in domains “Close entourage” ( P = 0.004), “Social and cultural life” ( P