Baixa capacidade funcional está associada a pior status socioeconômico em idosos de estudo populacional no sul do Brasil.

Background: Aging covers genetic, biological and psychological characteristics, as well as those that relate to the environment in which the person is inserted, such as the social, political, economic and cultural ones. Objective: Estimate the association between functional capacity (FC) and socioeconomic status (SES) of the elderly. Method: Cross-sectional, population-based epidemiological study. We analyzed subjects between 60 and 79 years old of both sexes (n=467). The FC was estimated through the SF-36 questionnaire, ordered in quartiles (Q1=worst and Q4=best) and dichotomized. The association between FC and SES was estimated by the Kruskal-Wallis test and by multiple logistic regression. Results: The median of FC was 70 (interquartile range -- IQR=40-85). There was greater difficulty for vigorous activities (42.8%); climbing several flights of stairs (29.3%); bending, kneeling, or stooping (35.6%); and walking several blocks (30.4%). A statistically significant association was observed between FC and worse SES (Q1=32.0% vs. Q4=22.5%), male gender (Q1=27.0% vs. Q4=61.5%), sedentary lifestyle (Q1=40.5% vs. Q4=14.9%), muscle strength (Q1=24.6 kg/f vs. Q4=32.6 kg/f) and physical performance (Q1=12s vs. Q4= 9s). The adjusted logistic regression indicated an association between the worst FC and the average SES (odds ratio -- OR=2.6; 95% confidence interval -- 95%CI 1.1-6.2), the worst SES (OR=2.2; 95%CI 0.9-5.4), female gender (OR=2.4; 95%CI 1.1-5.1), being insufficiently active (OR=1.6; 95%CI 1.0-2.6) and having the worst physical performance (OR=1.4; 95%CI 1.3-1.6). Conclusion: Low FC is associated with medium/worse SES in the elderly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]