Gender differences in health-related quality of life in multiple sclerosis

2009 ◽  
Vol 15 (11) ◽  
pp. 1339-1346 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ilaria Casetta ◽  
Trond Riise ◽  
Monica Wamme Nortvedt ◽  
Nicola Tiberio Economou ◽  
Riccardo De Gennaro ◽  
...  

Women have about twice the risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS) compared with men, a ratio that seems to be increasing. Most studies show that female patients seem to have a more favourable outcome of the disease. We studied the gender-specific impact of MS on health-related quality of life. We surveyed the population prevalence of MS patients in Ferrara, Italy. Data were extracted from the MS registry of the study area. Health-related quality of life was assessed using the MSQOL54 questionnaire. We analysed 370 patients (105 men and 265 women). They had worse scores than the general population in all health-related quality of life dimensions, ranging from 2.5 standard deviations (SD) lower for physical functioning to less than 0.5 standard deviations for mental health. Health-related quality of life scores were inversely correlated with disability scores. The impact of disability on health-related quality of life was higher for men than women regarding physical functioning (p < 0.01), vitality (p < 0.001), social functioning (p < 0.001), emotional wellbeing (p < 0.05) and mental health (p < 0.01). For scales reflecting mental health, a marked reduction with increasing disability was seen for men, while a linear reduction in the range of Expanded Disability Status Scale score 0—5 was reported for women, followed by no clear decrease for higher scores. We conclude that MS affects health-related quality of life in all of its dimensions. The impact of disability seems to be stronger among men, in particular for scales related to mental well-being. This could indicate that interventions should to be gender specific in order to better meet patients’ needs.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jansirani Natarajan ◽  
Mickael Antoine Joseph ◽  
Abdullah Al Asmi ◽  
Gerald Amandu Matua ◽  
Jaber Al Khabouri ◽  
...  

Objectives: Multiple sclerosis is a disabling neurological disorder with significant negative effects on patients’ quality of life. Despite the increased prevalence of multiple sclerosis in Arabian Gulf countries in recent years, no study has assessed the impact of multiple sclerosis on the healthrelated quality of life of Omani patients. Therefore, the objectives of the current study was to assess the impact of multiple sclerosis on the health-related quality of life of Omani patients using the validated disease-specific self-administered MusiQoL instrument. Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study was carried out between April and December 2019 on 177 Omani patients with multiple sclerosis attending two major hospitals in Oman. Patients’ health-related quality of life was assessed using the validated disease-specific self-administered MusiQoL instrument. Results: Majority (51.4%) of the patients had poor HRQOL and 48.6% had moderate HRQOL. We found that being older than 30 years, a female, married, separated, widowed, or divorced, and having visual and sleep problems had poorer health-related quality of life. Among the different health-related quality of life components, relationship with the healthcare system and relationship with family and friends were the most affected because of the disease process. Our results also showed that psychological well-being and coping domains of MusiQoL questionnaires are significantly reduced in females as compared to males. Conclusion: Understanding the health-related quality of life of Omanis with multiple sclerosis provides valuable knowledge that could help optimize the management of this disease.


2017 ◽  
Vol 49 (12) ◽  
pp. 943-950 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marieke Velema ◽  
Aline de Nooijer ◽  
Vivian Burgers ◽  
Ad. Hermus ◽  
Henri Timmers ◽  
...  

AbstractThe aim of this review was to determine the impact of primary aldosteronism on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and mental health. We performed a systematic literature search up to July 2017 in six electronic databases. First, we screened the articles derived from this search based on title and abstract. Second, the selected studies were systematically reviewed and checked for our predefined inclusion criteria. The search yielded 753 articles, of which 15 studies met our inclusion criteria. Untreated patients with primary aldosteronism showed an impaired physical and mental HRQoL as compared to the general population. Multiple domains of HRQoL were affected. This applied to patients with both an aldosterone-producing adenoma and bilateral adrenal hyperplasia. Adrenalectomy improves HRQoL. Conflicting results have been reported on the extent of this improvement, the improvement after initiation of medical treatment, and whether there is a difference in HRQoL after both treatments. Similarly, psychopathological symptoms of anxiety, demoralization, stress, depression and nervousness were more frequently reported in untreated patients with primary aldosteronism than in the general population and patients with hypertension. Also an impaired sleep quality has been reported. Improvement of these symptoms was observed after treatment with both adrenalectomy and mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists. This review shows that HRQoL is impaired and psychopathology is more frequently reported in patients with primary aldosteronism. This seems to be at least partly reversible after treatment but the extent of improvement remains unknown. To assess HRQoL in these patients more precisely a primary aldosteronism-specific HRQoL questionnaire is required.


2014 ◽  
Vol 35 (1) ◽  
pp. 48-54 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristin M. Khalaf ◽  
Karin S. Coyne ◽  
Denise R. Globe ◽  
Daniel C. Malone ◽  
Edward P. Armstrong ◽  
...  

2007 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 1038-1045 ◽  
Author(s):  
K.V.L. Turpin ◽  
L.J. Carroll ◽  
J.D. Cassidy ◽  
W.J. Hader

Baseline data from a population-based study examining the health-related quality of life (HRQL) of MS patients about to begin disease modifying therapy was used to determine the factors associated with the HRQL of Saskatchewan adults with relapsing-remitting MS. Participants completed a self-report questionnaire regarding demographic and socioeconomic status, fatigue, comorbid medical conditions, disability level (EDSS), number of attacks in past 6 months, illness intrusiveness (Illness Intrusiveness Ratings Scale), depression (Beck Depression Inventory), and HRQL (SF-36 Health Status Survey). Multiple linear regression models were used to identify the factors associated with the physical and mental health summary scores of the SF-36. We found poorer physical HRQL in those who are female; older; not working; have musculoskeletal or respiratory problems; greater fatigue, higher disability scores, and more MS attacks. High illness intrusiveness; digestive system problems; genitourinary problems; and headaches were associated with poorer mental HRQL. Interestingly, we found an interaction between sex and age in mental HRQL, with worse mental health in older men but better mental health in older women. These findings may assist health care providers in identifying patients who may be at risk for decline in their HRQL, permitting appropriate and timely interventions. Multiple Sclerosis 2007; 13: 1038—1045. http://msj.sagepub.com


2020 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 43-50
Author(s):  
Ashley N. Marshall ◽  
Alison R. Snyder Valier ◽  
Aubrey Yanda ◽  
Kenneth C. Lam

Context: There has been an increased interest in understanding how ankle injuries impact patient outcomes; however, it is unknown how the severity of a previous ankle injury influences health-related quality of life (HRQOL). Objective: To determine the impact of a previous ankle injury on current HRQOL in college athletes. Design: Cross-sectional study. Setting: Athletic training clinics. Participants: A total of 270 participants were grouped by the severity of a previous ankle injury (severe = 62, mild = 65, and no injury = 143). Main Outcome Measures: Participants completed the Foot and Ankle Ability Measure (FAAM) and the Short Form 12 (SF-12). Methods: A 2-way analysis of variance with 2 factors (injury group and sex) was used to identify interaction and main effects for the FAAM and SF-12. Results: No interactions were identified between injury group and sex. Significant main effects were observed for injury group, where the severe injury group scored lower than athletes with mild and no injuries on the FAAM activities of daily living, FAAM Global, and SF-12 mental health subscale scores. In addition, a main effect was present for sex in the SF-12 general health, social functioning, and mental health subscales in which females reported significantly lower scores than males. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that a severe ankle injury impacts HRQOL, even after returning back to full participation. In addition, females tended to report lower scores than males for aspects of the SF-12, suggesting that sex should be considered when evaluating HRQOL postinjury. As a result, clinicians should consider asking athletes about their previous injury history, including how much time was lost due to the injury, and should mindful of returning athletes to play before they are physiologically and psychologically ready, as there could be long-term negative effects on the patients’ region-specific function as well as aspects of their HRQOL.


2015 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 543
Author(s):  
Lara Gitto ◽  
Maria Daniela Giammanco

Background: Multiple Sclerosis (MS) represents one of the most common causes of neurological disability and the unpredictability and severity of its manifestations determine uncertainty in illness. While MS patients’ Health Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) has been frequently assessed, the impact of uncertainty on HRQoL has not been adequately considered to date. The objective of the study was to reduce this gap in the literature.Design: One hundred and twenty patients with relapsing-remittingMS were interviewed in order to gather information about their assessment of HRQoL, measured with the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) and their perceptions of uncertainty in illness assessed through the Mishel Uncertainty in Illness Scale (MUIS). The relationship between HRQoL and two dimensions of uncertainty, namely “ambiguity” and “inconsistency”, have been tested with diverse Tobit and Probit specifications.Results: Inconsistency exhibited a negative and significant correlation in all the specifications of the model. Marginal effects suggested how a unit change in the total score of the inconsistency scale determined an increase of 6.2% in the probability to report a VAS score higher than 60 (median score in the sample). Ambiguity and inconsistency, jointly considered, had a marginal effect of 2.1%.Conclusions: This study contributes to the assessment of the patient’s general status over the standard parameters for quality of life. It  may represent the starting point for further analyses on the impact of separate facets of the Uncertainty in Illness on HRQoL, experienced not only by MS patients, but also by other patients suffering from chronic conditions.


SLEEP ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 44 (Supplement_2) ◽  
pp. A143-A144
Author(s):  
Kelly Showen ◽  
Kathleen O’Hora ◽  
Beatriz Hernandez ◽  
Laura Lazzeroni ◽  
Jamie Zeitzer ◽  
...  

Abstract Introduction Insomnia affects 30–48% of older adults and impairs health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Numerous studies report Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT-I) as an effective non-pharmacological treatment for insomnia symptoms, with few examining the impact of CBT-I on mental and physical aspects of HRQoL. While limited research suggests that CBT-I leads to improvements in HRQoL, the impact of the cognitive versus behavioral components of CBT-I on HRQoL is unknown. Methods 128 older adults with insomnia (mean age=69, 66% female, 19% minority) were randomized to receive cognitive therapy (CT), behavior therapy (BT), or CBT-I. The Short Form (36) Health Survey (SF-36) was collected at baseline, post-treatment and six-month follow-up. Split-plot linear mixed models with age and sex as covariates to assess within and between subject changes were used to test intervention, time, and interaction effects on the mental health and physical well-being domains of HRQoL. Significance for all effects was defined as p &lt; 0.05. The effect size (d) was calculated by dividing the difference between means by the root-mean-squared error of the mixed effects model. Results The mental health-related QoL improved over time independent of treatment (Main effect of time: F(2, 202) = 6.51, p &lt; 0.002). The interaction failed to reach significance (Interaction: F(4, 202) = 1.19, p = .31). Simple effects revealed significant improvements among CBT-I participants at six months (p = .02, d = .53) and CT participants at post-treatment (p = .00, d = .79) and six months (p = .03, d = .66), but not among BT participants for either time point (p = .32, d = .24; p = .16, d = .35). Treatment did not improve physical health-related QoL over time (F(2, 202) = 1.01, p = .37) nor was there a significant interaction (F(4, 202) = .46, p = .76). Conclusion These findings suggest that CBT-I, particularly the CT component, may be effective in improving mental health-related QoL outcomes for older adults with insomnia. In contrast, neither CBT-I nor its component treatments were effective in improving physical health-related QoL. Support (if any) NIMHR01MH101468-01; Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center (MIRECC) at the VAPAHCS


F1000Research ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 ◽  
pp. 282
Author(s):  
Alessia Saverino ◽  
Eva Zsirai ◽  
Raphael Sonabend ◽  
Lorenza Gaggero ◽  
Isabella Cevasco ◽  
...  

Background: Health-related quality of life (HRQL) is important for evaluating the impact of a disease in the longer term across the physical and psychological domains of human functioning. The aim of this study is to evaluate HRQL in COVID-19 survivors in Italy using the short form 36-items questionnaire (SF-36). Methods: This is an observational study involving adults discharged home following a coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)-related hospital admission. Baseline demographic and clinical data including the Cumulative Illness Rating Scale (CIRS) and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) were collected. The validated Italian version of SF-36 was administered cross-sectionally. The SF-36 contains eight scales measuring limitations in physical and social functioning, the impact on roles and activities, fatigue, emotional well-being, pain and general health perception. Results: A total of 35 patients, with a mean age of 60 years, completed the SF-36. The results showed difficulties across the physical and psychological domains, particularly affecting the return to previous roles and activities. A higher burden of co-morbidities as well as a more severe muscle weakness was associated to a lower physical functioning. Younger age, rather than older, correlated to a perceived greater limitation in physical functioning and vitality. Conclusions: COVID-19 survivors particularly the ones of working age may need support for resuming their premorbid level of functioning and returning to work.


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