time trends in self-rated health and disability in older span¬ish people: differences by gender and age

background: to analyse time trends in self-rated health in older people by gender and age and examine disability in the time trends of self-rated health. methods: the data used come from the spanish national health surveys conducted in 2001, 2003, 2006 and 2011-12. samples of adults aged 16 yr and older were selected. multivariate logistic regression was used to assess the association between age, gender, socio-economic status, marital status, disability and self-rated health across period study. results: women exhibited lower (higher) prevalence of good self-rated health (disability) compared to men. the multivariate analysis for time trends found that good self-rated health increased from 2001 to 2012. overall, variables associated with a lower likelihood of good self-rated health were: being married or living with a partner, lower educational level, and disability. conclusion: trends of good self-rated health differ by gender according to socio-demographic factors and the prevalence of disability.