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According to NCOA research, nearly 95% of adults 60 and older have at least one chronic condition, while nearly 80% have two or more. Learn more about the most common chronic medical conditions and how you can prevent or manage them.
For persons aged 65 years and older, the prevalence of having one or more chronic diseases was higher than those aged 45–64 years. Among adults aged 65 years and older, the prevalence of those who reported having three or more chronic diseases was higher among those with SCD than those without SCD.
The six possible chronic conditions are arthritis, current asthma, cancer, cardiovascular disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and diabetes. Women in all age groups are more likely than men to have one or more, two or more, or three or more chronic conditions. Percentage of Adults age 55 years and over (Total, Male & Female), with ...
- Arthritis. “Arthritis is probably the number one condition that people 65 or older contend with,” says geriatrician Marie Bernard, MD, deputy director of the National Institute on Aging in Bethesda, Maryland.
- Heart Disease. According to the CDC, heart disease remains the leading killer of adults over age 65, accounting for 489,722 deaths in 2014. As a chronic condition, heart disease affects 37 percent of men and 26 percent of women 65 and older, according to the Federal Interagency Forum on Aging-Related Statistics.
- Cancer. Cancer is the second leading cause of death among people over age 65, with 413,885 deaths in 2014, according to the CDC. The CDC also reports that 28 percent of men and 21 percent of women over age 65 are living with cancer.
- Respiratory Diseases. Chronic lower respiratory diseases, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), are the third most common cause of death among people 65 and older, with 124,693 deaths in 2014, according to the CDC.
One out of every four 65-year-olds today will live past age 90, and one out of 10 will live past age 95. Women continue to outnumber men at older ages. Among people over 100 years old, 85 percent are women — but the gap between men and women is narrowing. The proportion of older adults living alone increases with advancing age.
