Unlocking the potential for the quality of life in older adults from Kazakhstan during the COVID-19 pandemic: modeling study on gender and place of residency and associated factors

Izekenova A. Sukenova D. Izekenova A. Nurbakyt A. Nikolic D. Macijauskiene J. Chen Y. Zhakupova M. Kainarbayeva M. Mitrovic S. Radosavljevic N. Alzahb S. Kuzmanovic Pficer J. Sun F.
2026 Frontiers Media SA

Frontiers in Medicine
2026 #12

Background: This study aimed to evaluate sociodemographic and health-related factors associated with quality of life (QoL) in older adults from Kazakhstan during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as gender- and place-of-residence differences in these factors associated with QoL. Method: This study included 445 individuals aged 60 years and above from both urban and rural areas in Kazakhstan, between June and July 2022. Sociodemographic and health-related variables were analyzed. QoL was evaluated by the Older People’s Quality of Life (OPQoL) Scale. Results: The multivariate regression analysis indicated that the entire study population belonging to an ethnic group other than Kazakh (p < 0.001) was associated with lower OPQoL scores. For men, being married (p = 0.001) was significantly associated with the higher OPQoL scores, while belonging to an ethnic group other than Kazakh (p = 0.040) was associated with the lower OPQoL scores. Regarding women, the presence of COPD (p < 0.001) and belonging to an ethnic group other than Kazakh (p < 0.001) were significantly associated with the lower OPQoL scores. For those living in urban areas, better self-reported overall health (p = 0.005) and the absence of chronic heart failure (p = 0.041) were significantly associated with higher OPQoL scores. In comparison, the presence of chronic diseases (p < 0.001) and belonging to an ethnic group other than Kazakh (p < 0.001) were associated with lower OPQoL scores. In the rural area, in univariate regression analysis, only diabetes (p = 0.012) was significantly associated with lower OPQoL scores. General linear model analysis indicated that age, in combination with various health and sociodemographic factors, significantly affected OPQoL scores. In men, significant associations involved age with diabetes (p = 0.024) and marital status (p < 0.001), and in women, age with COPD (p = 0.005), chronic diseases (p = 0.014), and ethnic background (p < 0.001). Among urban residents, age was significantly associated with chronic heart failure (p = 0.021), chronic disease (p = 0.005), and ethnic background (p < 0.001), while among rural residents, age was significantly associated with hypertension (p = 0.024) and chronic diseases (p = 0.043). Conclusion: Our findings suggested that various sociodemographic and health-related factors influence QoL in older adults. Furthermore, this study showed gender- and place of residence-differentiated predictors of QoL. These results call for gender and place-of-residence-responsive healthcare provision and community support services. Copyright

COVID-19 , health-related factors , older adults , quality of life , sociodemographic factors

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Center for Social and Business Research, Kenzhegali Sagadiyev University of International Business, Almaty, Kazakhstan
School of Social Work, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, United States
Department of Public Health, Asfendiyarov Kazakh National Medical University, Almaty, Kazakhstan
Department of Epidemiology with the Course of HIV, Asfendiyarov Kazakh National Medical University, Almaty, Kazakhstan
Faculty of Medicine, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia
Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, University Children’s Hospital, Belgrade, Serbia
Department of Geriatrics, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Kaunas, Lithuania
Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, College of Integrated Health Science, University at Albany, Albany, NY, United States
Department of Nutrition, Asfendiyarov Kazakh National Medical University, Almaty, Kazakhstan
Clinic for Rehabilitation “Dr Miroslav Zotovic”, Belgrade, Serbia
Department of Biomedical Sciences, State University of Novi Pazar, Novi Pazar, Serbia
King Faisal Medical City, Aseer Rehabilitation Center, Abha, Saudi Arabia
Department for Medical Statistics and Informatics, School of Dental Medicine, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia

Center for Social and Business Research
School of Social Work
Department of Public Health
Department of Epidemiology with the Course of HIV
Faculty of Medicine
Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
Department of Geriatrics
Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics
Department of Nutrition
Clinic for Rehabilitation “Dr Miroslav Zotovic”
Department of Biomedical Sciences
King Faisal Medical City
Department for Medical Statistics and Informatics

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