by University of Sheffield

Heatmap of latent class models. Credit: Environmental Health (2024). DOI: 10.1186/s12940-024-01133-8

Multimorbidity is the presence of two or more chronic health conditions that create disability and poor quality of life in old age. In 2023, the overall global prevalence of multimorbidity was 37.2%. However, the mechanisms driving multimorbidity are complex and not well understood.

The "Insights into relationship of environmental inequalities and multimorbidity" study aimed to identify groups of people in Serbia with similar health problems and to see if these groups were more likely to live in areas with poor air quality or water pollution. The research is published in the journal Environmental Health.

Researchers examined a large group of people from all over Serbia using information from the European Health Interview Survey, a regular survey used to understand the health of people across Europe.

The study found that the overall prevalence of multimorbidity in Serbia was 33.4%, with health problems grouped into six main categories: general health problems, heart problems, diabetes and related problems, lung problems, and muscle and bone problems.

The results showed that people living in areas with higher levels of air pollution, especially from tiny particles (PM10) and sulfur dioxide (SO₂), were more likely to have multimorbidity. Additionally, people exposed to polluted water, whether it was chemically polluted, biologically polluted, or both, were also more likely to have multimorbidity.

"This research represents a unique collaboration between the Healthy Lifespan Institute, the University of Belgrade and public health and environmental agencies in Serbia. It shows, for the first time, the association between environmental pollution and specific multimorbidity clusters, highlighting the need for policies for tackling health inequalities and multimorbidity to address both socioeconomic and environmental factors," said Professor Liddy Goyder, senior author of the study and Professor of Public Health and member of the Healthy Lifespan Institute at the University of Sheffield

These findings suggest that improving air and water quality could help reduce the number of people with multiple health problems in Serbia.

More information: Nina Rajovic et al, Insights into relationship of environmental inequalities and multimorbidity: a population-based study, Environmental Health (2024). DOI: 10.1186/s12940-024-01133-8

Journal information: Environmental Health 

Provided by University of Sheffield