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Disease Incidence and Mortality Among Older Americans and Europeans

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  • Aïda Solé-Auró
  • Pierre-Carl Michaud
  • Michael Hurd
  • Eileen Crimmins

Abstract

Recent research has shown a widening gap in life expectancy at age 50 between the United States and Europe as well as large differences in the prevalence of diseases at older ages. Little is known about the processes determining international differences in the prevalence of chronic diseases. Higher prevalence of disease could result from either higher incidence or longer disease-specific survival. This article uses comparable longitudinal data from 2004 and 2006 for populations aged 50 to 79 from the United States and from a selected group of European countries to examine age-specific differences in prevalence and incidence of heart disease, stroke, lung disease, diabetes, hypertension, and cancer as well as mortality associated with each disease. Not surprisingly, we find that Americans have higher disease prevalence. For heart disease, diabetes, and cancer, incidence is lower in Europe when we control for sociodemographic and health behavior differences in risk, and these differences explain much of the prevalence gap at older ages. On the other hand, incidence is higher in Europe for lung disease and not different between Europe and the United States for hypertension and stroke. Our findings do not suggest a survival advantage conditional on disease in Europe compared with the United States. Therefore, the origin of the higher disease prevalence at older ages in the United States is to be found in higher prevalence earlier in the life course and, for some conditions, higher incidence between ages 50 and 79. Copyright Population Association of America 2015

Suggested Citation

  • Aïda Solé-Auró & Pierre-Carl Michaud & Michael Hurd & Eileen Crimmins, 2015. "Disease Incidence and Mortality Among Older Americans and Europeans," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 52(2), pages 593-611, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:demogr:v:52:y:2015:i:2:p:593-611
    DOI: 10.1007/s13524-015-0372-7
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    1. Peter Adams & Michael D. Hurd & Daniel L. McFadden & Angela Merrill & Tiago Ribeiro, 2004. "Healthy, Wealthy, and Wise? Tests for Direct Causal Paths between Health and Socioeconomic Status," NBER Chapters, in: Perspectives on the Economics of Aging, pages 415-526, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    2. James Banks & Alastair Muriel & James Smith, 2010. "Disease prevalence, disease incidence, and mortality in the United States and in England," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 47(1), pages 211-231, March.
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    Cited by:

    1. Steven A. Haas & Katsuya Oi & Zhangjun Zhou, 2017. "The Life Course, Cohort Dynamics, and International Differences in Aging Trajectories," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 54(6), pages 2043-2071, December.
    2. Vincenzo Atella & Federico Belotti & Daejung Kim & Dana Goldman & Tadeja Gracner & Andrea Piano Mortari & Bryan Tysinger, 2021. "The future of the elderly population health status: Filling a knowledge gap," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 30(S1), pages 11-29, November.
    3. Murat Anil Mercan, 2017. "The Relationship between Working Hours and Mortality in the United States," Working Papers 2017-01, Gebze Technical University, Department of Economics.
    4. Radim Bohácek & Jesús Bueren & Laura Crespo & Pedro Mira & Josep Pijoan-Mas, 2018. "Inequality in Life Expectancies across Europe," Working Papers wp2018_1810, CEMFI.
    5. Pilar Zueras & Roberta Rutigliano & Sergi Trias-Llimós, 2020. "Marital status, living arrangements, and mortality in middle and older age in Europe," International Journal of Public Health, Springer;Swiss School of Public Health (SSPH+), vol. 65(5), pages 627-636, June.
    6. Kaestner, Robert & Schiman, Cuiping & Ward, Jason, 2020. "Education and health over the life cycle," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 76(C).
    7. Anne R Pebley & Noreen Goldman & Theresa Andrasfay & Boriana Pratt, 2021. "Trajectories of physical functioning among older adults in the US by race, ethnicity and nativity: Examining the role of working conditions," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 16(3), pages 1-22, March.
    8. Raquel Fonseca & François Langot & Pierre-Carl Michaud & Thepthida Sopraseuth, 2020. "Understanding Cross-country Differences in Health Status and Expenditures," NBER Working Papers 26876, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    9. Haas, Steven A. & Oi, Katsuya, 2018. "The developmental origins of health and disease in international perspective," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 213(C), pages 123-133.
    10. Radim Boháček & Jesús Bueren & Laura Crespo & Pedro Mira & Josep Pijoan‐Mas, 2021. "Inequality in life expectancies across Europe and the US," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 30(8), pages 1871-1885, August.
    11. Côté-Sergent, Aurelie & Fonseca, Raquel & Strumpf, Erin, 2020. "Comparing the education gradient in health deterioration among the elderly in six OECD countries," Health Policy, Elsevier, vol. 124(3), pages 326-335.
    12. Pilar Zueras & Roberta Rutigliano & Sergi Trias-Llimós, 0. "Marital status, living arrangements, and mortality in middle and older age in Europe," International Journal of Public Health, Springer;Swiss School of Public Health (SSPH+), vol. 0, pages 1-10.

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