Use of healthcare services at the end of life in decedents compared to their surviving counterparts: A case-control study among adults born before 1946 in Friuli Venezia Giulia.

Closeness to death appeared to be strongly associated with healthcare utilization in adult/elderly subjects. The risk seems to be greater among younger age groups than older ones, especially for acute based services. Reducing acute healthcare at the EOL represents an important issue to improve the quality of life in proximity to death.