A comparative study of quality of life of patients with maxillofacial fracture and healthy controls at two tertiary healthcare institutions

Hemodialysis (HD) patients have lower functional abilities compared to healthy people, and this is associated with lower physical activity in everyday life. This may affect their quality of life, but research on this topic is limited. Therefore, the present study aimed to determine the relationship between habitual physical activity and quality of life in HD patients and healthy controls. Ninety-three HD patients and 140 controls participated in the study. Quality of life was assessed using a 36-item medical outcomes study short-form health survey (SF-36). Human Activity Profile (HAP) was used to assess habitual physical activity. The adjusted activity score (AAS) from HAP, age, gender, fat tissue index (FTI), lean tissue index (LTI), and Davies comorbidity score were analyzed as possible predictors of the Physical Component Summary (PCS) of the SF-36. Three sequential linear models were used to model PCS. In Model 1, PCS was regressed by gender and age; in Model 2 the LTI, FTI, and Davies comorbidity scores were added. Model 3 also included AAS. After controlling for age and gender (ModelHD 1: p = 0.056), LTI, FTI, and Davies comorbidity score effects (ModelHD 2: p = 0.181), the AAS accounted for 32% of the variation in PCS of HD patients (ModelHD 3: p < 0.001). Consequently, the PCS of HD patients would increase by 0.431 points if the AAS increased by one point. However, in healthy controls, AAS had a lower impact than in the HD sample (B = 0.359 vs. 0.431), while the corresponding effects of age and gender (ModelH 1: p < 0.001), LTI, FTI, and Davies comorbidity score (ModelH 2: p < 0.001) were adjusted for. The proportion of variation in PCS attributed to AAS was 14.9% (ModelH 3: p < 0.001). The current study results showed that physical activity in everyday life as measured by the HAP questionnaire is associated to a higher degree with the quality of life of HD patients than in healthy subjects. Routine physical activity programs are therefore highly justified, and the nephrology community should play a leading role in this effort.

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Intestinal barrier dysfunction in irritable bowel syndrome: a systematic review

Therapeutic Advances in Gastroenterology ◽

10.1177/1756284821993586 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 14 ◽

pp. 175628482199358

Author(s):

Nikita Hanning ◽

Adam L. Edwinson ◽

Hannah Ceuleers ◽

Stephanie A. Peters ◽

Joris G. De Man ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Systematic Review ◽

Irritable Bowel Syndrome ◽

Abdominal Pain ◽

Barrier Function ◽

Significant Proportion ◽

Healthy Controls ◽

Barrier Dysfunction ◽

Irritable Bowel

Background and Aim: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a complex and heterogeneous disorder. Sensory, motor and barrier dysfunctions are the key physiological endophenotypes of IBS. Our aim is to review studies evaluating barrier dysfunction in adults and children with IBS, as well as to link those changes with IBS symptomatology and quality of life. Methods: A comprehensive and systematic review of multiple databases was performed up to March 2020 to identify studies comparing intestinal permeability in IBS patients with healthy controls. Both in vivo and in vitro studies were considered. Results: We identified 66 studies, of which 27 used intestinal probes to quantify barrier function. The prevalence of barrier dysfunction differed between PI-IBS (17–50%), IBS-D (37–62%) and IBS-C (4–25%). At a group level, permeability was increased compared with healthy controls in IBS-D (9/13 studies) and PI-IBS (4/4 studies), but only a minority of IBS-C (2/7 studies) and not in the only IBS-M study. All four studies in children with IBS demonstrated loss of barrier function. A heterogeneous set of tight junction genes were found to be altered in small and large intestines of adults with IBS, but these have not been evaluated in children. Positive associations were identified between barrier dysfunction and bowel disturbances (6/9 studies), abdominal pain (9/13 studies), overall symptom severity (1/6 studies), depression and anxiety (1/1 study) and quality of life (1/4 studies). Fecal slurry or supernatants of IBS patients were found to induce barrier disruption in animal models (5/6 studies). Conclusions: Barrier dysfunction is present in a significant proportion of adult and all pediatric IBS studies, especially in the IBS-D and PI-IBS subtype. The majority of studies indicated a positive association between loss of barrier function and symptoms such as abdominal pain and changes in the bowel function.

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Surgically treated acromegaly patients have a similar quality of life whether controlled by surgery or requiring additional medical therapy (QuaLAT Study)

Pituitary ◽

10.1007/s11102-021-01153-4 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Muhammad Fahad Arshad ◽

Oluwafunto Ogunleye ◽

Richard Ross ◽

Miguel Debono

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Medical Treatment ◽

Physical Component Score ◽

Healthy Controls ◽

Component Score ◽

Post Surgery ◽

Group 3 ◽

Group 2 ◽

Group 1

Abstract Purpose There is no consensus on quality of life (QOL) in patients with acromegaly requiring medical treatment after surgery compared with those achieving remission by surgery alone. Methods QuaLAT is a cross-sectional study comparing QOL in surgery-only treated acromegaly patients versus those requiring medical treatment post-surgery. Patients attending clinics were identified and divided into—Group 1: patients who had surgery only and were in biochemical remission, Group 2: all patients on medical treatment post-surgery, Group 3: patients from Group 2 with biochemical control. Participants were asked to fill three questionnaires; Acromegaly Quality of Life Questionnaire (ACROQOL), 36-Item Short Form Survey (SF36), and Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS). Results There were 32 patients in Group 1 and 25 in Group 2. There was no difference in QOL scores between groups 1 and 2, as measured by ACROQOL (mean difference [MD] = − 2.5, 95% CI − 16.6 to 11.6; p = 0.72), SF36v2 [Physical component score (PCS) MD = − 4.9, 95% CI − 10.9 to 1.2; p = 0.12; mental component score MD = − 3.0, 95% CI − 10.5 to 4.4; p = 0.44], or FSS (MD = − 0.004, 95% CI − 1.14 to 1.33; p = 0.1). Comparison between groups 1 and 3 however showed that PCS (and 3 subdomains) was significantly better in group 3 (MD = − 8.3, 95% CI − 14.8 to -1.8; p = 0.01). All three QOL scores were lower when compared with healthy controls. Conclusions Medical treatment not only achieves a QOL comparable to surgery, it may also be associated with better QOL in physical subdomains. When compared with healthy controls, QOL remains worse in treated acromegaly patients compared to controls.

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