Five-year survival rate among older adults participating in the national geriatric screening program: A South Korean population-based cohort study

Association of regular health check-ups with a reduction in mortality in 625,279 elderly participants with hypertension: A population-based cohort study

OBJECTIVES

Health check-ups constitute an essential part of China's primary health care policy and a key measure for health screening and risk assessment for elderly people with hypertension and chronic diseases. The role of health check-ups in reducing the incidence of cardiovascular and all-cause mortality remains controversial. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between health check-ups and cardiovascular and all-cause mortality in elderly individuals with hypertension.

STUDY DESIGN

Retrospective cohort study.

METHODS

This study included 625,279 elderly participants with hypertension. Associations of regular and irregular health check-ups with cardiovascular disease related (CVD-related) mortality, all-cause mortality and non-CVD-related mortality were tested via the inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW) matching and Cox proportional hazard models. Adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) and 95 % confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated for mortality.

RESULTS

A total of 625,279 participants completed health assessments. During a median follow-up of 5.43 years, 45,927 CVD-related deaths and 25,519 non-CVD-related deaths were recorded. After IPTW, regular health check-ups were significantly associated with reduced CVD-related mortality and all-cause mortality (HR: 0.442, 95 % CI: 0.434-0.450; and HR: 0.441, 95 % CI: 0.435-0.448, respectively). An even stronger association between regular health check-ups and reduced CVD-related mortality was observed in participants with diabetes (HR: 0.40, 95 % CI: 0.39-0.42, P for interaction <0.001), dyslipidaemia (HR: 0.43, 95 % CI: 0.42-0.44, P for interaction <0.001) and a high risk or very high risk of hypertension (HR: 0.41, 95 % CI: 0.40-0.42, P for interaction <0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

Regular health check-ups may be associated with reductions in CVD mortality and all-cause mortality in the elderly population with hypertension, especially in individuals with diabetes, dyslipidaemia and a high risk or very high risk of hypertension.

Unmet medical needs and influencing factors among Korean police officers: a cross-sectional survey

OBJECTIVES

South Korea grapples with a disproportionately high incidence of unmet medical needs, a concern that is particularly acute among police officers, who are exposed to significant occupational risks. Given the pivotal role of police officers in upholding democratic values and public safety, their well-being holds critical societal implications. This study aims to determine the incidence of unmet medical needs among police officers and identify the influencing factors.

DESIGN

This is a retrospective and cross-sectional study. Applying the Andersen behavioural model and multiple logistic regression analysis, we explored factors impacting unmet medical needs.

SETTING

The study took place in South Korea and involved its total force of police officers.

PARTICIPANTS

Our analysis encompassed data from 6591 participants, representing 5.2% of South Korea's total police officers.

OUTCOME MEASURES

Unmet medical needs.

RESULTS

Our findings revealed several influencing factors. First, predisposing factors included sex, with women experiencing a higher incidence of unmet medical needs. Second, enabling factors highlighted the significance of job positions and reduced annual leave guarantees in influencing unmet medical needs. Finally, need factors demonstrated the substantial impact of chronic diseases, heightened levels of depression, reduced subjective health assessments, increased stress levels and exposure to rough physical activity on driving unmet medical needs.

CONCLUSIONS

To mitigate and pre-empt the long-term health repercussions associated with unmet medical needs, intervention strategies should prioritise these identified factors. An integrated healthcare programme emerges as a critical necessity for addressing the healthcare challenges faced by police officers.