Life Expectancy Of Wheelchair Users

The life expectancy of the disabled is less than non-disabled members of the population. Although a study in Korea conducted from 2004-2017 found that the disparity is shrinking. In addition, disability is a broad term, and not all disabilities impact a person’s life expectancy to the same degree. For example, wheelchair users have a lower life expectancy than non within the disabled population.

The life expectancy of wheelchair users in the United States is 49 years. However, these statistics are skewed due to the high mortality rate of spinal injuries in the first year. In addition, the statistics do not consider when a person becomes a wheelchair user or why they use a chair.

Statistics, while useful, can be problematic due to the plethora of variables. For example, a person who begins using a wheelchair at sixty has already exceeded the average life expectancy of a wheelchair user. Thus, such a stat is unhelpful. Instead, it is more productive to examine what factors can lower a wheelchair user’s life span in order to mitigate them.

In the United States, wheelchair users have a life expectancy of 49 years. But wheelchair users are not a monolithic group living with the same disability, nor do they have equal access to quality healthcare. The UN has shown that life as a disabled person varies significantly depending on where a person lives.

The life span of a wheelchair user also depends on when a person becomes disabled. As research in Australia showed, their citizens are living longer, which results in a higher likelihood of somebody becoming disabled at some point in their lifetime.

A study published in PLOS One also revealed that the severity of limitation impacts a disabled person’s lifespan. Some wheelchair users have a more active lifestyle than your average non-disabled person. On the other hand, some wheelchair users struggle to keep their bodies active due to paralysis.

But even within paraplegic and quadriplegics, the wheelchair life expectancy stats provide a skewed perspective. As a meta-analysis revealed, mortality rates for spinal injuries are highest in the first year. But even within that initial twelve months, survival rates vary depending on which country the person lives in.

The result is that the longer a person lives after a spinal injury, the better their chances of a longer life expectancy. In 2016, Allen Rucker, the then-oldest living paraplegic, wrote, “When it comes to the average life expectancy of a paraplegic, they lie.”

Life expectancy for a wheelchair user depends on a plethora of factors. For instance, an active ambulatory wheelchair user who can limit their wheelchair use to two-hour intervals will not necessarily have a shorter lifespan than a non-disabled person. However, a full-time wheelchair user with chronic heart failure and uncontrolled diabetes will statistically have very few years left.

Examples of factors that influence the life expectancy of a wheelchair user include:

How much control a person has over these factors depends on their wealth, nation of residence, accessibility, and luck. After all, the genes we are born with are not something an individual can control. However, a person can choose to stop smoking if they have access to the right support system.

How well a wheelchair fits a user will impact that person’s quality of life and lifespan. An ill-fitting chair can cause:

Wheelchairs come in a variety of makes and models. But even the right chair must be set up correctly to suit its user’s body. The height and positioning of the foot and armrests are essential to good posture. For those that require a headrest, it is vital that it is at the right height and centered correctly.

Sitting in a wheelchair can impact a user’s lifespan, just like sitting too long at a desk impacts a non-disabled person’s lifespan. Moving around is important to a healthy life, and how much control a wheelchair user has over this depends on their situation.

Ambulator wheelchair users generally can stand up without help from another individual. Even if they can’t, they typically can move their own limbs. They have the ability to perform stretches, shift their weight, and roll their ankles and wrists to increase circulation and prevent pressure sores from developing.

Wheelchair users who cannot transfer themselves in and out of their chairs have less control over how long they sit in a chair. Ideally, a person should change position, such as shifting their weight or moving from witting to reclining, every two to four hours. However, due to the failures of certain communities to provide quality care for their disabled citizens, this doesn’t always happen.

Passive exercises where a person or a machine helps move limbs can be incredibly beneficial and help extend a lifespan of a quadriplegic wheelchair user. But how much control a quadriplegic has over the situation depends on their wealth, nation, access to health care, friends, and family.

Excellent hygiene plays a crucial role in a wheelchair user’s lifespan. In comparison, a non-disabled person can have poor hygiene without necessarily shortening their lifespan, so long as they are active and have access to healthy and properly prepared food.

However, poor hygiene can lead to potentially deadly or life-altering infections for wheelchair users. For instance, UTIs are typically a minor inconvenience that can be cleared up with a round of antibiotics. However, people with no feeling below the waist often don’t notice the initial signs of a UTI, which delays treatment and could lead to a serious infection that impacts the kidneys.

A similar issue occurs with pressure sores. Not only are wheelchair users more likely to develop pressure sores than the non-disabled, but they also may not notice initial signs. Delayed treatment can lead to severe infections. Also, a lack of mobility can mean longer healing times, putting a person’s health at further risk.

Quality hygiene reduces the risk of UTIs and pressure sores. In addition, frequent and proper hygiene increases the likelihood that these problems are caught sooner, should they occur, raising the chances of a positive outcome.

Life expectancy stats for wheelchair users are lower than for non-disabled people. However, an individual wheelchair user’s life expectancy can be improved by access to a properly fitting chair, physical activity (even if passive), and by quality hygiene. wheelchair users can live much longer than the stats predict.