Patients with chronic pain: evaluating depression and their quality of life in a single center study in Greece

Abstract Background Chronic pain constitutes one of the most common reasons for seeking health care services and may even lead to disability. Chronic pain has been associated with depression and deterioration of the quality of life. The aim of our study is to outline the burden of chronic pain in the context of a primary health care (PHC) setting in Greece and to investigate its association with depression and quality of life. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted from September 2016 to November 2016. The subjects of the study comprised 200 individuals who visited the regional medical center of Ag. Theodoroi, Greece. The collected data were from a representative sample of 200 adults and included demographic data, social and medical history, presence and characteristics of chronic pain and questions from three questionnaires for the assessment of pain (BPI- short form), the investigation of depression (PHQ-9) and the evaluation of the quality of life (EuroQ-5D) validated in Greek language. Multiple regression analysis was used in order to find associated factors with quality of life, depression and chronic pain. Results A percentage of 56.8% of the participants, the majority of whom (62%) were women, reported chronic pain. Among individuals with pain, lower back area was the most common location. Based on the given questionnaire, depression was detected in 22. 5% of the participants who claimed chronic pain. Regression analyses revealed that women and respondents with chronic mental disorders like depression and anxiety had significantly higher scores on the pain scale and suffered pain which had a greater impact on their daily activities. According to regression analysis decreased quality of life was expressed by women, as well as participants with a chronic mental disorder. A significant reverse correlation emerged between the quality of life, depression and pain scales. Conclusion Chronic pain, as it has been studied within this PHC setting, is a common health care problem. Individuals who had experienced chronic pain and depression had a lower health-related quality of life.

Download Full-text

New Model for Couple Therapy for Patients with Chronic Pain and their Caregivers: An Attempt to Improve Quality of Life and Reduce Pain

Clinical Practice and Epidemiology in Mental Health ◽

10.2174/1745017902016010053 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 16 (1) ◽

pp. 53-58

Author(s):

Shima Rouhi ◽

Payman Dadkhah ◽

Manijeh Firoozi ◽

Masoud Hashemi

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Chronic Pain ◽

Interpersonal Relationships ◽

Couple Therapy ◽

Short Form ◽

Control Group ◽

Improve Quality ◽

Innovative Therapy ◽

Quasi Experimental

Background: Several psychological interventions have been implemented to manage chronic pain. In this study, in addition to the patients, his/her spouses have participated in the program. Besides, this innovative therapy integrates several practical approaches into one comprehensive protocol. Objective: This study aimed to analyze the effectiveness of couple therapy (patient/caregiver-oriented) on improving the quality of life and reducing pain among patients with chronic pain. Methods: The present study is a quasi-experimental and clinical trial with a control group with pretest and posttest. The authors conducted this study at LABAFINEJAD Hospital in Tehran on 30 patients with chronic pain and their spouses by having a short form of a questionnaire for quality of life and chronic pain score questionnaire to measure the effectiveness of the treatment. Results: The results indicated that this treatment increased two aspects of quality of life remarkably, social function and strength for continuing the performance; that help boosts interpersonal relationships as well. Regarding the results, although the couple-based treatment could improve all aspects of pain, the two primary subscales, physical health and mental health, both enhanced. Besides, the treatment reduced the intensity of pain. Conclusion: Couple-based intervention through increasing social support, improving the quality of sex, decentralizing of pain, and paying attention to the neglected needs of caregivers and patients with chronic pain can improve quality of life and reduce pain in patients.

Download Full-text

Quality of sleep and health-related quality of life among health care professionals treating patients with coronavirus disease-19

International Journal of Social Psychiatry ◽

10.1177/0020764020942800 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 002076402094280 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Jelena Stojanov ◽

Marina Malobabic ◽

Goran Stanojevic ◽

Milos Stevic ◽

Vuk Milosevic ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Health Care ◽

Mental Status ◽

Health Care Professionals ◽

Short Form ◽

Health Related Quality ◽

Quality Of Sleep ◽

Related Quality ◽

Health Related

Background: Health care professionals exposed to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) are facing high levels of stress. Aim: The aim was to evaluate the quality of sleep (QoS) and health-related quality of life (HRQoL), among health care professionals treating patients with COVID-19, as well as quantifying the magnitude of symptoms of depression and levels of anxiety. Methods: We included 201 health care professionals in a cross-sectional, web-based study by applying 7-item Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD-7) Scale, Zung Self-rating Depression Scale, 36-item Health Survey of the Medical Outcomes Study Short Form (SF36), Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and additional survey constructed for the purpose of the study. Results: Health care workers who treated COVID-19 patients were more afraid of becoming infected or of transmitting the infection to a family member with a significantly low self-assessment of their mental status. Poor QoS and HRQoL correlated with high health anxiety and severe depressive symptoms and several demographic characteristics. Multiple linear regression analysis showed that higher scores on GAD-7 (beta = .71, p < .01) and lower scores on mental health (MH) subscale on SF36 questionnaire (beta = –.69; p < .01) were independent predictors of the higher PSQI score (adjusted R2 = .61, p < .01 for overall model). Higher scores on GAD-7 (beta = .68, p < .01) and worse self-perceived mental status (beta = .25; p < .05) were independent predictors of the lower SF36 scores (adjusted R2 = .73, p < .01 for overall model). Conclusion: The major MH burden of health care professionals treating infected patients during the COVID-19 pandemic indicates that they need psychological support.

Download Full-text

Impact of lian gong on the quality of life of individuals with dizziness in primary care

Revista de Saúde Pública ◽

10.11606/s1518-8787.2019053001234 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 53 ◽

pp. 73

Author(s):

Aline Lamas Lopes ◽

Stela Maris Aguiar Lemos ◽

Pedro Henrique Scheidt Figueiredo ◽

Juliana Nunes Santos

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Health Care ◽

Functional Capacity ◽

Short Form ◽

Control Group ◽

Short Form Health Survey ◽

Primary Health ◽

Form Health ◽

Short Form Health

OBJECTIVE: To assess the effects of the lian gong practice as a rehabilitation strategy in primary health care on the quality of life and functional capacity of people with dizziness. METHODS: Randomized controlled clinical trial. Thirty-six people, who were complaining of dizziness or vertigo without the presence of central signs and were referred by the physician of primary health care participated in the study. The individuals were randomly allocated to the three experimental conditions: lian gong group (n = 11), vestibular rehabilitation group (n = 11) and control group (n = 14). The interventions were weekly, in group, with duration of 12 sessions. The participants were evaluated before and after the intervention regarding quality of life by the 36-Item Short Form Health Survey and the functional capacity by the Short Physical Performance Battery. RESULTS: The scores of all domains of the Short Form Health Survey increased after intervention in the lian gong group. This variation was higher than that observed in the control group for the domains functional capacity, limitation by physical aspects and general health status, and also higher than that found after the intervention in the Vestibular Rehabilitation Group regarding pain. No differences were found in the Short Physical Performance Battery. CONCLUSIONS: Based on the results presented, lian gong improves the quality of life of individuals with dizziness, without altering the functional capacity.

Download Full-text

Lidocaine infusions in chronic pain management: A prospective case series analysis

British Journal of Pain ◽

10.1177/20494637211054198 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 204946372110541

Author(s):

Elizabeth Vacher ◽

Monika Kosela ◽

Charlie Song-Smith ◽

Fausto Morell-Ducos ◽

Alan Fayaz

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Chronic Pain ◽

Short Form ◽

Case Series ◽

Brief Pain Inventory ◽

Intravenous Lidocaine ◽

Patient Cohort ◽

Pain Outcomes ◽

The Impact

Chronic pain conditions are prevalent and cause a significant burden of disease. Intravenous lidocaine infusions have been reported to have an analgesic effect in patients with chronic neuropathic pain, but there is limited data supporting the efficacy of lidocaine across other chronic pain phenotypes. Our study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of a single infusion of intravenous lidocaine for pain relief and the impact on quality of life. We evaluated data from 74 patients with chronic pain who were treated with intravenous lidocaine at a specialist pain centre. Participants completed a questionnaire consisting of the Brief Pain Inventory (BPI) Short Form and additional EQ-5D quality of life metrics, before treatment and at follow-up. Data comparing pain severity did not demonstrate a statistically significant change after treatment when averaged across the entire patient cohort (6.15–5.88, p = .106), irrespective of gender or pain phenotype. Scores for pain interference showed statistically significant reductions following treatment (7.05–6.41, p = .023), which may have been driven through improvements in sleep (7.41–6.35, p = .001); however, these reductions are not clinically significant. The patient cohort was stratified into responders and non-responders based on >30% improvement in response to an overall impression of pain reduction question following treatment. In the ‘responder’ cohort, pain intensity scores showed a statistically significant reduction post-infusion (6.18–5.49, p = .0135), but no change was apparent for non-responders (6.07–6.09, p = .920). There were no differences between responders and non-responders for pain sub-types in our study. This study found no difference in pain outcomes in a cohort of patients with chronic pain, a mean of 63 days following a single lidocaine infusion. However, a specific subgroup of responders may show slight improvements in some pain outcomes that may warrant further exploration.

Download Full-text

Oral Health-Related Quality of Life of Greek Adults: A Cross-Sectional Study

International Journal of Dentistry ◽

10.1155/2011/360292 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 2011 ◽

pp. 1-7 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

William Papaioannou ◽

Constantine J. Oulis ◽

Demetra Latsou ◽

John Yfantopoulos

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Oral Health ◽

Rural Areas ◽

Positive Impact ◽

Short Form ◽

Functional Limitation ◽

Greek Language ◽

The Impact ◽

Greek Adults

Purpose. The aim of the present study was to investigate the impact of oral health status on the quality of life of adults in different regions of Greece, using the Oral Health Impact Profile-short form (OHIP-14).Methods. A random sample consisting of a total of 504 Greek adults between the ages of 35–44 years (mean 39.1 ± 3.5) was selected from different urban and rural areas, and face-to-face interviews were conducted using the validated Greek language OHIP-14. Associations of the total OHIP-14 score and its 7 sub-scales along with the self-perceived quality of life were evaluated with Spearman's correlations.Results. The subjects had an overall weighted OHIP-14 score of 1.1 (sd 1.9). No significant differences were found for either rural or non-metropolitan areas when compared to urban or metropolitan regions. High scores of above 2 were determined for functional limitation, physical pain, handicap, and the psychological discomfort scales. The education level of the subjects had a significant positive impact on the quality of life of the subjects.Conclusions. Dental and oral health conditions are factors that do impact on the quality of life of individuals.

Download Full-text

Adaptation and Validation of the Kidney Disease Quality of Life-Short Form Questionnaire in the Greek Language

American Journal of Nephrology ◽

10.1159/000252926 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 31 (1) ◽

pp. 9-14 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

P. Malindretos ◽

P. Sarafidis ◽

S. Spaia ◽

A. Sioulis ◽

N. Zeggos ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Kidney Disease ◽

Short Form ◽

Greek Language

Download Full-text

Evaluation of an Instrument Assessing Influence of Gout on Health-Related Quality of Life

The Journal of Rheumatology ◽

10.3899/jrheum.080506 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 35 (12) ◽

pp. 2406-2414 ◽

Cited By ~ 45

Author(s):

JAN D. HIRSCH ◽

SUSAN J. LEE ◽

ROBERT TERKELTAUB ◽

DINESH KHANNA ◽

JASVINDER SINGH ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Short Form ◽

Demographic Data ◽

Reliability And Validity ◽

Health Related Quality ◽

Patient Reported ◽

Related Quality ◽

Health Related ◽

The Impact

ObjectiveTo evaluate the reliability and validity of an instrument assessing the influence of gout (acute and chronic) on health-related quality of life (HRQOL).MethodsFocus groups were used to examine the content of an existing Gout Assessment Questionnaire (GAQ1.0). GAQ2.0 was developed, consisting of a section describing the impact of gout on HRQOL [Gout Impact (GI)] and 4 sections describing subjects’ gout overall and demographic data. The GAQ2.0 and the Medical Outcomes Study Short Form-36 Version 2 (SF-36v2) were completed by gout patients in 3 US cities. GI scales were examined using clinical judgment, review of item statistics, Rasch analysis, and confirmatory factor analysis.ResultsSubjects (n = 308) were predominantly male (90.2%), Caucasian (75.9%), with a mean age 62.2 ± 11.8 years. Half the subjects (49.7%) reported ≥ 3 attacks in the past year. Two-week test-retest reliability for each scale was good (0.77 to 0.89) for all 5 GI scales. All scales achieved high sufficient (0.86 to 0.89) or excellent (0.93 to 0.97) ratings based on 10-item adjusted alpha coefficients. Correlations and tests among known groups indicated subjects with more severe gout had higher GI scores (i.e., greater gout impact). GI scores correlated more highly with patient-reported measures of gout severity than the SF-36v2 and several traditional measures of gout severity.ConclusionThe GAQ2.0 is an instrument for measuring the impact of gout on HRQOL. The GI section exhibited acceptable reliability and validity characteristics. Future studies should assess GI responsiveness, minimally important differences, and psychometric properties in other patient populations.

Download Full-text

Frequency of headache among university students and its effect on daily living activities

Neurology Asia ◽

10.54029/2021wdk ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 26 (3) ◽

pp. 535-538

Author(s):

Ruhsen Öcal ◽

Ilkin Iyigündogdu ◽

Nazli Gursoy Kirnap ◽

Irem Talu ◽

Defne Alkislar ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

University Students ◽

Short Form ◽

Demographic Data ◽

Depression Scale ◽

Common Symptom ◽

Factors Affecting ◽

Sf 36 ◽

Characteristic Features

Background & Objective: Headache is a common symptom in the general population. The aim of this study was to investigate the frequency of headache among a university students population in Ankara, Turkey; and to evaluate the factors affecting the headache and the effect of headache on students’ quality of life. Methods: A face-to-face questionnaire was applied to all participants in the study. In the questionnaire, demographic data, personal background and family history of the participants as well as the presence of headache were collected. The characteristic features of the headache, accompanying symptoms and medication use for the headache were evaluated. The 36-Item Short Form Survey (SF-36), Beck depression and Beck anxiety scales were administered to all participants. Results: Three hundred and sixty six university students participated in the study. Three hundred and thirty one participants (90.4%) had experienced headache at least once in their lifetime. Headache was more common in women (p˂0.01). Depression was found in 135 (36.9%) students with the Beck depression scale, and anxiety was found in 236 (64.5%) students with the Beck anxiety scale. There was no relationship between depression or anxiety and the presence of headache (p>0.05). Emotional role difficulties, social function, pain and general health scores were significantly lower on SF-36 in the group with headache (p˂0.05) than without headache. Conclusion: Headache adversely affects the quality of life and is a common symptom among university students, independent of depression and anxiety.

Download Full-text

The Influence of Medical Services Public Management on the Population’ Life Quality

WSEAS TRANSACTIONS ON ENVIRONMENT AND DEVELOPMENT ◽

10.37394/232015.2021.17.60 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 619-629

Author(s):

ANASTASIIA BARZYLOVYCH ◽

YULIІA URSAKIІ ◽

ALINA NADEZHDENKO ◽

TETIANA MAMATOVA ◽

OLEKSII CHYKARENKO ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Public Health ◽

Quality Of Life ◽

Health Care ◽

Regression Analysis ◽

Health Services ◽

Public Management ◽

Medical Services ◽

Life Index ◽

Quality Of Life Index

The purpose of this article is to study the factors that have a direct impact on improving the quality of life through improving public administration in the field of health care. In the course of our research are considered the following aspects: significant economic and social aspects of the medical sphere that affect the quality of life; a list of public services that are of significant public interest and have the greatest impact on quality of life, methodological approaches to assessing the quality of life, the main problems and possible ways to improve public health policy to improve the quality of life. To achieve the objectives of the study, several statistical indicators were selected and a number of statistical methods of analysis were used: pairwise correlation, regression analysis, methods of comparison, synthesis and comparison. Statistical analysis was conducted according to the countries of the European continent, which belong to different social models. An economic-mathematical model of the dependence of the Quality of Life Index on the factors of public management of medical services has been built, which shows that the increase in the Quality of Life Index by 70.2% is due to the level of state funding, insurance and the number of hospital beds. One of the main conclusions is the fact that the Health Index, along with the Purchasing Power Index, have the greatest positive impact on the quality of life of the population. According to the results of the regression analysis, it was found that that the most statistically and practically significant factor of the linear dependence of the studied indicators of public health services management on the Quality of Life Index is public expenditures in the field of health care. In this context, public policy should be mainly aimed at addressing the problems of efficient allocation of resources and fragmentation of policies and strategies for the development of effective socio-economic systems for providing quality health services to ensure a high level of quality of life.

Download Full-text

Care Burden and Related Factors on the Caregivers of Patients Receiving Service from Hemodialysis Unit

10.22541/au.162732612.21006226/v1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Mucahit AKCIN ◽

Mahcube CUBUKCU

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Short Form ◽

Demographic Data ◽

Hemodialysis Patients ◽

Related Factors ◽

Care Burden ◽

Hemodialysis Unit ◽

Sf 36 ◽

The Mean

Introduction Caregivers of hemodialysis patients may experience stress, depression, fatigue, and decreased quality of life. This study aimed to examine the caregiver burden and related factors in patients’ caregivers under dialysis treatment. Method Our study was conducted between February and April 2019 in the Hemodialysis Unit of our Hospital Internal Diseases Clinic. Eighty-three people providing primary care to patients who had received hemodialysis service for at least three months were included in the study. The socio-demographic data of the caregivers were recorded. Care burden was evaluated by Zarit Burden Interview (ZBI) and dependency status with Katz Activities of Daily Living (ADL) instrument. Quality of life was evaluated with the 36-Item Short Form Survey (SF-36). Results The mean age of 183 caregivers included in the study was 46.35 ± 24.20 years; 67.5% of them were female. The mean ZBI score of the caregivers was 32.5 ± 14.4. Care burden was observed to be absent or very mild in 20.5% of the caregivers, mild-moderate in 57.8%, moderate-heavy in 19.3%, and heavy in 2.4%. The care burden was higher in those who felt insufficient to provide care or did not receive help from other family members for patient care (p<0.05). Besides, if the hemodialysis frequency was more than three times a week, the care burden was higher (p=0.003). Care burden was higher in functionally dependent patient (p=0.013). ZBI was negatively correlated with the SF-36 subscales, except for the physical function subscale (p<0.05). Conclusion The care burden was high in primary caregivers of hemodialysis patients. The care burden was higher in caregivers of patients with bedridden, high frequency of hemodialysis, and low quality of life. In addition to hemodialysis patients’ routine treatment, it may be appropriate to develop support groups and new care approaches for caregivers to reduce the care burden.

Download Full-text