S17	Disability - Invalidité
Organiser:	Crimmins Eileen Andrus Gerontology Center, University of Southern California, 3715 McClintock Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0191, USA Tel: +1 213 740 1707 Fax: +1 213 740 8241 Email: crimmin@almaak.usc.edu
Outline:	Disability reflects one dimension of health; the inability to perform expected social roles because of a physical or mental problem. As such disability, is related to the social cost of health problems. Disability is related to other dimensions of health including the presence of diseases or conditions, functioning losses and mortality. This session will emphasise the population or demographic aspects of disability. Papers that address the following issues would be appropriate: Trends in population disability. Papers on this topic could clarify differences in trends by socio-demographic group, e.g. age, sex or gender. Research on causes of trends would be appropriate for this session. The link between disability and other dimensions of health. This is an important demographic issue and papers in this area could be either methodological or substantive in focus. Trends and differences in disability-free life expectancy. Papers that analysed multiple countries are very appropriate at this time. Measurement of disability and its relationship to other aspects of health. Tracking trends and differences in disability and comparing levels across countries presents new challenges for valid and reliable measurement. Papers addressing both current and proposed measurement would be appropriate.