关键词: 慢性病共病, 老年人, 网络分析

Abstract: Background　Multimorbidity，the coexistence of multiple chronic diseases，is common in older adults，and is an ongoing challenge for public health. However，only a few studies on multimorbidity have been conducted in China. Objective　This research was aimed to identify the prevalence and patterns of multimorbidity among Chinese older adults，providing scientific suggestions for the prevention and management of multimorbidity in this population. Methods　Data were extracted from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study（CHARLS）2018，involving 10 836 adults aged 60 and older with complete information of key variables（chronic disease prevalence，age，sex，education level，marital status，and type of hukou）. Chi-square test was used to assess differences in the prevalence of single and multiple chronic diseases by sex. Chi-square test for trend was used to assess the differences in the trend in prevalence of single and multiple chronic diseases by age. Weighted networks were adopted to present the complex patterns of multimorbidity. Gephi was used for visualizing the patterns of associative multimorbidity. Results　Up to 86.23%（n=9 344）of the participants had at least one chronic disease. Hypertension〔46.46%（5 034/10 836）〕，arthritis or rheumatism〔44.68%（4 842/10 836）〕，and gastric or digestive diseases〔31.64%（3 429/10 836）〕 were top three most prevalent chronic conditions. The prevalence of chronic diseases increased with age（χ2 =31.953，P<0.001），with a greater prevalence in women than in men〔88.30%（4 899/5 548）vs 84.06%（4 445/5 288），χ2=41.069，P<0.001〕. At least two chronic diseases coexisted in 7 059 cases（65.14%）. Women had higher prevalence of multimorbidity than men〔68.71%（3 812/5 548）vs 61.40%（3 247/5 288），χ2=63.650，P<0.001〕. The prevalence of multimorbidity increased with age（χ2=31.118，P<0.001）. The 14 chronic conditions among the participants demonstrated 91 pair multimorbidity patterns. The top three pair patterns of multimorbidity with corresponding prevalence were hypertension & arthritis or rheumatism〔22.13%（2 398/10 836）〕，arthritis or rheumatism & gastric or digestive diseases〔19.15%（2 075/10 836）〕，and arthritis or rheumatism & heart disease〔16.67%（1 806/10 836）〕. The age-specific patterns of multimorbidity had certain differences. For those aged 60 to 69，the top three multimorbidity patterns were hypertension & arthritis or rheumatism〔19.81%（1 290/6 512）〕，arthritis or rheumatism & gastric or digestive diseases〔18.54%（1 207/6 512）〕，and hypertension & dyslipidemia〔16.68%（1 086/6 512）〕. For those aged 70 to 79，hypertension & arthritis or rheumatism〔25.33%（813/3 209）〕，arthritis or rheumatism & gastric or digestive diseases〔20.91%（671/3 209）〕，and hypertension & heart disease〔19.79%（635/3 209）〕were the top three patterns with the highest prevalence. For those aged 80 and older，the top three patterns of multimorbidity were hypertension & arthritis or rheumatism〔26.46%（295/1 115）〕，hypertension & heart disease〔17.67%（197/1 115）〕，arthritis or rheumatism & gastric or digestive diseases〔17.67%（197/1 115）〕. Conclusion　The prevalence of multimorbidityhy among elderly Chinese population was high. And the patterns of multimorbidity varied by age. To realize the co-management，co-prevention and co-reduction of multiple conditions，public health practitioners should provide integrated healthcare services. Our findings suggest that clinical guidance on the assessment and management of multimorbidity should be developed，taking influential diseases such as hypertension as a breakthrough and along with different strategies by age and gender.

Key words: Multiple chronic conditions , Aged, Network analysis