[Individual factors associated with medical consultation by adults]. / Fatores individuais associados à utilização de consultas médicas por adultos.
Rev Saude Publica
; 40(3): 436-43, 2006 Jun.
Article
em Pt
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-16810367
OBJECTIVE: To identify individual characteristics associated with a higher likelihood of consulting a physician and excess physician appointments. METHODS: We carried out a population-based study including 3,100 adults (> 20 years) living in the city of Pelotas, Southern Brazil between October and December 2003, using a multi-stage cluster sampling strategy. Subjects were interviewed to obtain socioeconomic, demographic, and health-related data, as well as information on the number of medical appointments in the past three months. Overusage was defined as > 4 appointments. Multivariate analysis was carried out using Poisson regression based on a conceptual model, and results are presented as prevalence ratios and their respective 95% confidence intervals. RESULTS: The prevalence of medical appointments was 55.1%. Higher likelihood of consulting a physician was associated with female sex, hospital admission in the past year, former smoking, diabetes, and arterial hypertension. We found an increasing trend in the number of appointments with increasing age (p < 0.001) and decreasing self-perceived health status (p < 0.001). Prevalence of over utilization was 9%, and showed positive association with increased body mass index, (p = 0.01), increasing age (p = 0.006), and decreasing self-perceived health status (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Presence and over utilization of physician appointments were associated with female sex, hypertension, and hospital admission in past year, as well as with increasing age and decreasing self-perceived health status.
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Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Autoimagem
/
Nível de Saúde
/
Mau Uso de Serviços de Saúde
/
Necessidades e Demandas de Serviços de Saúde
Tipo de estudo:
Prognostic_studies
/
Risk_factors_studies
Aspecto:
Determinantes_sociais_saude
/
Equity_inequality
/
Patient_preference
Limite:
Adult
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
/
Middle aged
País/Região como assunto:
America do sul
/
Brasil
Idioma:
Pt
Revista:
Rev Saude Publica
Ano de publicação:
2006
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
Brasil
País de publicação:
Brasil