Female Survival Advantage Diminishes with Age

Women live longer than men, and while there is no shortage of theories as to why this is the case, the research community has yet to convincingly demonstrate which of them are correct. Adding an additional twist that will need to be explained, these researchers suggest that the size of the mortality rate advantage enjoyed by women diminishes considerably in late old age:

Although increased survival longevity among females is observed throughout much of adult life, supporting evidence among the oldest old is lacking. [Here, we] examine the hypothesis that gender differences in longevity [and] survival diminish with advancing age. The Jerusalem Longitudinal Study follows a representative cohort born 1920-21, comprehensively assessed at ages 70, 78, 85, and 90. Mortality data were collected from 1990-2013. Kaplan-Meier survival curves and Mortality Hazards Ratios were determined, adjusting for gender, marital status, education, loneliness, self-rated health, physical activity, functional status, neoplasm, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, ischemic heart disease.

Survival between ages 70-78 was 77.3%, 78-85 was 68.9%, 85-90 years was 71.1%, and 90-93 years was 80.5%. With advancing age, the survival advantage among females vs. men declined: at ages 70-78 (85.6% vs. 71%), 78-85 (74% vs. 63%), 85-90 (74% vs. 67.5%), and 90-93 (80% vs. 81%). Compared to females, the male mortality adjusted hazard ratio from ages 70-78 was 2.93; ages 78-85 was 2.1; ages 85-90 was 1.6; and ages 90-93 was 1.1. Our findings confirm the hypothesis that the increased longevity observed among females at age 70 gradually diminishes with advancing age, and disappears beyond age 90.

Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1089/rej.2014.1587

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