Long term effects of parental disability: A register based life course follow-up of Norwegians born in 1967-1976

Background: Health and social conditions early in life has been associated with health and social function in adult age. However, the specific relation between parental disability in early life and adult function has not been subject to epidemiological investigation. We investigated the association between parental disability pension in childhood and adolescence, and subsequent outcomes related to health and social function in young adult age. Methods: Through linkage between several national registers containing personal information from birth into adult age we established a longitudinal, population based cohort. Study participants were all subjects born in Norway in 1967–1976 who were national residents at age 18 (N=610 981). The study outcomes were educational attainment, intellectual level, mortality, disability pension, work participation, and sickness absence in young adult age. Results: Parental disability pension was, after adjustment for potential confounders, moderately associated with low educational attainment, low intellectual performance, increased mortality, lack of work participation, and increased number of sickness absence spells. The association was strongest for own disability pension when attaining adult age (hazard ratio (95% confidence interval) was 1.98 (1.81–2.17) for women and 1.94 (1.79–2.11) for men). The hazard of own disablement pension was higher when the parent of one’s own gender was [...]