Abstract
ObjectiveStudies on the association between self-rated health and acute conditions are sparse. The aim of this study was to examine whether individuals respond to acute conditions (such as the common cold) in health ratings as well as the effect of chronic conditions (using the Charlson comorbidity score) on self-rated health.MethodsThe national representative survey data was linked with the claims data from the Taiwan National Health Insurance for 13,723 adults ≥ 18 years. Ordered logistic regressions with fractional polynomials were estimated to determine the relationship between the frequency of common cold episodes and the Charlson comorbidity score on self-rated health. The interactions between these two variables and the baseline age were tested.ResultsSelf-rated health worsens with the increased frequency of both common cold episodes and the Charlson comorbidity score. Both variables have a non-linear relationship with self-rated health. Younger individuals put heavier weight on acute health conditions than their older counterparts.ConclusionIndividuals respond to questions regarding their self-rated health based on their acute health condition along with chronic condition. Thus the information on self-rated health depends on the timing the information is collected, and whether at that time the individual experienced acute health conditions or not.
Highlights
Many studies have investigated how a person’s self-rated health (SRH) is related to chronic diseases, but none of them examined whether individuals were influenced by the frequency of their common cold episodes when rating their health
To identify an individual’s Charlson comorbidity score, the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) was linked to the 2004 claims data in the National Health Insurance Research Database (NHIRD)
Medical claims under the NHI were sent to the Bureau of National Health Insurance (BNHI) of Taiwan for cross-checking and validation to ensure the accuracy of the diagnosis coding
Summary
Many studies have investigated how a person’s self-rated health (SRH) is related to chronic diseases, but none of them examined whether individuals were influenced by the frequency of their common cold episodes when rating their health. Self-rated health has been widely investigated in health services research, measured by using the single question “in general, how would you rate your general health?” and the mutually exclusive response options of “excellent, very good, good, fair, or poor” mainly because of its use in risk adjustment This variable gained the attention of researchers because studies showed its association with mortality [1], as well as medical service utilization [2,3].
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