Approved Research

Understanding the patterns of multimorbidity, and the role of environmental, lifestyle-related, psychological and genetic factors

Lay summary

Multimorbidity brings many challenges to the prevention and management of chronic diseases and has become an important hidden danger that threatens human survival and health. Ascertaining the key determinants of multimorbidity is an essential prerequisite for developing our knowledge of the pathogenesis of multimorbidity, for the early identification of individuals at risk, and for informing effective public health and health care-oriented strategies. However, large gaps remain in our knowledge regarding pattern and determinants of multimorbidity. At the same time, the current studies on the causal relationship of multimorbidity and environmental, lifestyle-related, psychological and genetic factors is needed to explore using large cohort. This study aims to: (1) understand current status of multimorbidity, and associations and strengths between chronic diseases, and assess the impact of multimorbidity on the risk of death in the elderly; (2) explore the association between multimorbidity with environmental, lifestyle-related, psychological and genetic factors to establish a causal network of multimorbidity 3) develop the risk assessment models for multimorbidity. We intend to carry out our research with a three-year duration. The findings in this study are expected to benefit the identification of vulnerable individuals of non-communicable diseases and multimorbidity and improve the precise prevention.