Prevalence, Expenditures, and Complications of Multiple Chronic Conditions in the Elderly

Abstract

PREVIOUS STUDIES have shown that as much as 45% of the general population and 88% of the population aged 65 years and older have 1 chronic condition or more and that more than 75% percent of all US health care expenditures are related to the treatment of chronic conditions.¹ The prevalence of chronic conditions continues to increase, and by 2020 an estimated 157 million Americans (nearly 50% of the population) are projected to have at least 1 chronic condition.² Therefore, it is not surprising that considerable attention has been directed toward designing treatment protocols to prevent or inhibit the progression of specific chronic conditions such as diabetes, asthma, or stroke. Sophisticated pharmacological therapies, disease management programs, and patient education efforts have been developed in an attempt to prevent progression of specific chronic conditions and to improve ongoing disease management.^3,4 However, with rare exceptions, nearly all of these initiatives have focused on a single chronic condition. Relatively few initiatives address the reality that 50% of all individuals with chronic conditions have multiple chronic conditions.¹ In 2000, an estimated 57 million Americans had multiple chronic conditions, and the number is projected to increase to 81 million by 2020.²