A comparison of small-area deprivation indicators for public-health surveillance in Sweden.
Scand J Public Health
; 51(4): 520-526, 2023 Jun.
Article
in En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-34282665
ABSTRACT
AIMS:
The aims of this study were to construct a small-area index of multiple deprivation (IMD) from single deprivation indicators (SDIs) and to compare the explanatory power of the IMD and SDIs with regard to mortality. We considered a small-area division of Sweden consisting of 5985 DeSO (Demografiska statistikområden), each with a population size between 653 and 4243 at the end of 2018.METHODS:
Four SDIs were provided by open-source data (a) the proportion of inhabitants with a low economic standard; (b) the proportion of inhabitants aged 25-64 years with ⩽12 years of schooling; (c) the proportion of inhabitants aged 16-64 years who were not in paid employment; and (d) the proportion of inhabitants who lived in a rented apartment/house. A four-indicator IMD was constructed using factor analysis. As a validation, the IMD and SDIs were compared by exploring their DeSO-level associations with spatially smoothed death rates, with robustness checks of associations across different small-area contexts defined by degree of urbanisation and distribution of immigrants from non-Western countries.RESULTS:
The constructed IMD and SDI1 performed essentially equally and outperformed SDI2, SDI3 and SDI4. Associations between IMD/SDI1 and the spatially smoothed death rates were most pronounced within the age range 60-79 years, showing 5-8% lowered rates among those categorised in the least deprived quintiles of IMD and SDI1, respectively, and 7-9% elevated rates among those categorised in the most deprived quintiles. These associations were consistent within each small-area context.CONCLUSIONS:
We suggest prioritisation of SDI1, that is, a DeSO-level deprivation indicator based on open-access data on economic standard, for public-health surveillance in Sweden.Key words
Full text:
1
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Health Status Indicators
/
Employment
Type of study:
Screening_studies
Limits:
Aged
/
Humans
/
Middle aged
Country/Region as subject:
Europa
Language:
En
Year:
2023
Type:
Article