Abstract
This cross-sectional study was based on a probabilistic sample of 597 community-dwelling elderly people living in Belo Horizonte. Theaim was to assess which chronic conditions are independently associated with ongoing employment among elderly people. It was conducted to assess the isolated effect of each one. The multivariate analysis was based on Poisson regression models with robust variance, adjusted by sex, age, schooling, retirement and chronic conditions. Arthritis (or rheumatism) was the only chronic condition with independent and statistic significant association with ongoing employment, even after adjustment for other chronic conditions: older people with medical diagnosis of arthritis have lower odds of being in the labor market (Fully adjusted Prevalence ratio [PR] = 0.54; CI 95%: 0.35-0.85). Moreover, our results showed that gender modifies this association, with a lower propensity among females (PR=0.45; CI 95%: 0.25-0.84). Our results highlight the importance of health promotion among workers, mostly arthritis prevention and management among women.
Employment; Health of the elderly; Chronic illness; Arthritis