Análise da qualidade de vida de pessoas idosas participantes de uma universidade aberta à terceira idade

Abstract

Introduction: The Brazilian elderly population has grown increasingly in recent decades. Well-established estimates project that this is occurring due to demographic changes, specifically the drop in birth rates and mortality rates, bringing a significant increase in life expectancy at the end of the century and the rapid increase in this population suggests that changes in the living conditions of these individuals should be carried out, since a large part of the elderly population presents functional impairment linked to loss of balance, falls and the inability to perform simple daily tasks. Objective: to analyze the quality of life of elderly people participating in the Open University for the Elderly of the Federal University of Alagoas – UFAL (UnATI-UFAL) project in Maceió – Alagoas. Methodology: This is an observational, descriptive and cross-sectional study with a sample of 13 elderly people, women and men, aged 60 years or over, who regularly participated in the activities of the UnATI-UFAL project. For investigation, the SF-36 questionnaire was used to collect data. Results: It was possible to observe that the domains that presented lower averages were: emotional aspects, limitations due to physical aspects and pain. The domains that presented the best averages were: functional capacity, general health and mental health. And when comparing the SF-36 results between men and women, it stands out that men present inferior results in almost all areas. Especially in the areas of limitations due to physical aspects, social aspects and emotional aspects. Conclusion: After analyzing the results, it can be concluded that the studied group has a good quality of life, since the scores of the analyzed domains, especially in the domains of functional capacity, general health status, mental health and social aspects presented the best results. scores on the SF-36, these scores highlight that participation in UnATI-UFAL helps these elderly people maintain an active lifestyle, highlighting the importance of this population's participation in programs that have as their main objective body movement to build a standard of living that suits them, taking advantage of the opportunities given to them, according to their needs, capabilities and preferences, with the aim of delaying the losses caused by the aging process.