HEALTH RISK - A person's likelihood of suffering illness or disease as determined by one or more factors, such as family history, health habits, exposure to environmental or other health hazards.
RISK FACTOR - A factor that causes a person or a group of people to be at risk for an unwanted or unhealthy event, as cigarette smoking, which raises the chances of getting lung or heart disease.
Persons with certain types of disabilities or injuries often have predictable patterns of HEALTH RISK depending on the nature and intensity of the disorder. Certain conditions, such as Alzheimer's disease, spinal cord injuries, Down syndrome or AIDS suggest certain predictable health RISK FACTORS, which drive surveillance activities.
Disabilities and aging can present communication challenges for some, which make the identification of health conditions a true challenge. In many cases, there has been a failure to identify true health risk factors while trivial health conditions were given equal weight to those with potentially fatal consequences.
In those individuals who have complex disabilities, treatable conditions are often mistaken for typical signs and symptoms of the person's disability. Cerebral palsy, for instance, may involve changes in the ability to eat, which may cause the person to be quite thin. This can often mask more dangerous health problems, such as acid reflux disease, which can affect the person's ability to use nutrients in a normal way. The first instance may be an outcome of the disability. The second is a treatable condition.