Abstract
BackgroundSocio-demographic variables are widely known to have an association with the presence of any disability. However, the association between the severity of locomotor disability and socio-demographic variables has never been investigated in Bangladesh.MethodsA cross sectional survey of adults with locomotor disabilities was conducted between December 2010 and February 2011 at the Centre for the Rehabilitation of the Paralysed (CRP), Dhaka, Bangladesh. During the study period 328 adults with locomotor disabilities met our selection criteria, but 316 consented and participated in the study. The 55-item Locomotor Disability Scale was used to measure disability. This study investigated the socio-demographic determinants of the severity of locomotor disability: age, gender, marital status, educational attainment, occupation, income status, type of house, living in own/rented house, household monthly income, household population and area of residence.ResultsParticipants’ age was positively associated with the severity of their locomotor disability (β = 0.01; 95% CI: 0.004 to 0.02), adjusting for diagnosis and other socio-demographic variables studied. Individuals who had an income experienced 0.35 (95% CI: -0.63 to −0.07) points decrease in the severity of disability than those did not have an income, adjusting for diagnosis and rest of the socio-demographic variables studied. In comparison to the unemployed individuals, students, homemakers, and individuals in elementary occupation respectively experienced 0.75 (95% CI: -1.08 to −0.43), 0.51 (95% CI: -0.82 to −0.19) and 0.37 (95% CI: -0.66 to −0.08) points decrease in the severity of locomotor disability, adjusting for diagnosis and rest of the socio-demographic variables studied.ConclusionsThe severity of locomotor disability has an association with individuals’ age, income status and occupation of the adults with such disability in Bangladesh. No such association was evident with other socioeconomic position and demographic variables. This finding suggests that people with locomotor disabilities in Bangladesh experience similar disabling built and attitudinal environments irrespective of their socioeconomic positions and demographic characteristics. Further community-based studies are needed to confirm such conclusions.
Highlights
Socio-demographic variables are widely known to have an association with the presence of any disability
This study investigated the socio-demographic determinants of the severity of locomotor disability (LD): age, gender, marital status, educational attainment, occupation, income status, type of house, living in own/rented house, household monthly income, household population and area of residence, adjusting for diagnosis
Conclusions socio-demographic variables are widely known to have an association with the presence of any disability, this study did not find any association of such variables with the severity of LD apart from age, occupation and income status
Summary
Socio-demographic variables are widely known to have an association with the presence of any disability. According to the ICF, disability does not result from individuals’ health conditions alone, but when the negative aspects of their health conditions (impairments) are confronted with unfavourable environmental (physical, social and attitudinal) and personal factors [1]. The inclusion of such contextual factors in the ICF framework validates their role as the important determinants of disability. There is growing evidence of the association between individuals’ societal conditions and their health [2,3,4]; and of a strong relationship between socio-economic position and the incidence of disabling health conditions [5, 6]. Social theories of disability suggest that disability is largely determined by social determinants, the conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work and age [5, 8]
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