A Systematic Review of Life Expectancy and Healthy Life Expectancy of Persons with Disabilities

Abstract

This study aimed to systematically review the literature estimating the life expectancy and healthy life expectancy of persons with disabilities to identify gaps compared to the non-disability persons in health. Twelve articles were selected after reviewing papers (Published for Jan. 01. 2000-Mar. 31. 2021) searching for Korean studies on Google Scholar, RISS, National Assembly Digital Library, and literature in English on the Web of Science and PubMed. Among the articles, four included persons with all kinds of disabilities, eight included those defined as disabled persons and then compared with the non-disability persons or the general population, and five assessed among the disabilities by the severity. Persons with disabilities had a shorter life expectancy and healthy life expectancy than those without disabilities or the general population; people with severe disabilities had a shorter life expectancy than those with mild disabilities; gaps for healthy life expectancy were bigger than those in life expectancy. Further, it is necessary to delineate the differences in life expectancy and healthy life expectancy between persons with and without disabilities according to the severity and type of disability and sociodemographic levels such as sex, educational attainment, income, and occupation of the persons with disabilities. Policies should be established that reduces the current gap, and the life expectancy and healthy life expectancy of persons with disabilities should be regularly estimated to monitor the effect of healthcare policies.