Flattening the quality of life curve? A prospective person-centred study from Norway amid COVID-19

Quality of Life Research - We examined multidimensional, heterogeneous reactions to the COVID-19 pandemic and associated measures to provide further insights into the developmental processes of...     

Does binge eating disorder impact weight-related quality of life?

OBJECTIVES: To determine whether binge eating disorder (BED) impacts weight-related quality of life in obese individuals seeking weight loss treatment and to investigate the role of psychological symptoms, BMI, and demographic variables in the relationship between BED and weight-related quality of life. RESEARCH METHODS AND PROCEDURES: Three hundred seventeen women (BMI = 37.6) and 213 men (BMI = 41.3) completed questionnaires on admission into an intensive residential lifestyle modification program. Weight-related quality of life was assessed using the Impact of Weight on Quality of Life-Lite (IWQOL-Lite). The presence of BED was determined using the Questionnaire on Eating and Weight Patterns-Revised. Psychological symptoms were assessed using the Beck Depression Inventory and the global severity index of the Symptom Checklist 90-R. RESULTS: BED prevalence in this sample was 17.9%. Participants with BED, in comparison with those without BED, were more likely to be women (75.8% vs. 56.3%, p < 0.001), younger (45.0 vs. 49.7 years, p = 0.003), white (98.9% vs. 91.7%), heavier (BMI = 42.0 vs. 38.5, p = 0.002), psychologically distressed, and more impaired on total IWQOL-Lite (51.5 vs. 65.3, p < 0.001) and all IWQOL-Lite subscales. However, after controlling for demographic variables, BMI, and psychological symptoms, BED was not independently associated with weight-related quality of life. DISCUSSION: The association between BED and impairment in quality of life that has been previously reported in the literature may largely be accounted for by differences between those with and without BED on demographic variables, BMI, and psychological symptoms. BED does not seem to independently impact weight-related quality of life.     

Does urinary incontinence affect quality of life of Greek women less severely? A cross-sectional study in two Mediterranean settings

Objective  

Numerous studies have identified a reduced health-related quality of life (QoL) in patients with urinary incontinence (UI). The aim of this study was to assess and compare QoL in women with UI in the island of Crete, Greece, and in Turkey.     

Does hyperuricemia affect mortality? A prospective cohort study of Japanese male workers

A positive association between hyperuricemia and cardiovascular disease has been reported, but no study has evidenced yet the precise role of serum uric acid in the development of cardiovascular disease. In addition, no epidemiological studies have so far documented a decreased risk of cancer among people with hyperuricemia, even though the antioxidant action of uric acid has recently been stressed to inhibit DNA damage. The present prospective cohort study investigates the relationship between hyperuricemia and health hazards in a Japanese working population. The subjects were 49,413 Japanese male railroad workers, aged 25-60 years at enrollment. Serum uric acid and other baseline data were provided by annual health-survey records from 1975 to 1982. The vital status of the subjects was traced until the end of 1985 for those who remained alive. During an average 5.4-year study period, 984 deaths were recorded. Those with serum uric acid over 8.5 mg/dl showed elevated relative risks (RRs) of death in all causes (RR 1.62, p<0.01), coronary heart disease ( RR 1.52), stroke (RR 2.33, p<0.01), hepatic disease (RR 3.58, p<0.01), and renal failure ( RR 8.52, p<0.01), as compared with those with serum uric acid levels of 5.0-6.4mg/dl. The RR of death in all causes still remains statistically significant when adjusted by age and serum total cholesterol (2.00, p<0.01), age and alcohol intake (1.85, p<0.001), age and smoking (1.69, p<0.001), age and gout treatment (1.61, p<0.05), and also age and BMI (1.50, p< 0.05). On the other hand, the RR of all causes decreased but was still above 1.0 when adjusted by age and blood glucose (1.62), age and systolic blood pressure (1.32), age and GOT (1.23), and also age and history of cardiovascular disease (1.17). These results showed that hyperuricemia has a strong association with the RRs of death in all causes, coronary heart disease, stroke, hepatic disease and renal failure, and indicated that serum uric acid seems to be a considerable risk factor for reduced life expectancy.     

A two-year prospective study of the health-related quality of life of children with chronic illness – the parents’ perspective

The aim of this study was to assess prospectively changes in the health-related quality of life (HRQL) of children and adolescents with diabetes, asthma or cystic fibrosis (CF). One hundred and twenty-two parents of children aged 10–16 years with asthma, diabetes, or CF were recruited from specialist paediatric clinics. Parents described their childrens HRQL using the Child Health Questionnaire (PF98) at baseline, 6, 12, 18 and 24 months post-baseline. They reported that the general health of children with CF was significantly worse than that of children with asthma and diabetes at baseline. In other domains there were few differences between the HRQL of children in the three groups. In several domains, the HRQL of children with asthma or diabetes improved over the 2years of the study. This improvement was less evident for children with CF.     

Does decentralisation improve human resource management in the health sector? A case study from China

A major obstacle to the provision of health services is lack of an effective workforce. Human resource management (HRM) can improve the effectiveness of the workforce, though this is difficult in large bureaucratic organisations. Decentralisation is a common reform strategy and this paper sets out to examine whether HRM would be improved in decentralised settings. Indicators were developed for three areas of HR outcome: (i) appropriate staff numbers, with (ii) appropriate skills and experience, providing, (iii) appropriate inputs to organisational performance. An attempt was made to link these human resource (HR) outcomes to relevant HRM actions in two counties--one richer and one poorer--in Fujian Province, China. One general county hospital and 5 township health centres were selected for study in each country. A health facility-based survey collected information on characteristics of the workforce and staff surveys identified changes in the management of human resources and staff inputs to performance before and after decentralisation. Whilst some benefits were identified from decentralising HRM, the complexity of the decentralisation itself, and other external pressures coupled with inadequate capacity building meant that some HRM actions were not always aligned with health service objectives. Better planning and preparation coupled with strong monitoring would increase the chances of decentralisation improving HRM in the health sector.     

Does bruxism impact the quality of life of children and adolescents? A systematic review and meta-analysis

Background

This study evaluated the impact of bruxism on the quality of life of children and adolescents.

Methods

Electronic searches were performed in the PubMed (Medline), Scopus, Web of Science, Lilacs, Cochrane Library, and SIGLE databases. We included observational studies that evaluated general and/or oral health-related quality of life in children and adolescents, with and without bruxism. Methodological quality and risk of bias were evaluated using the Fowkes and Fulton tool. Two meta-analyses (MA) were performed. MA1 considered the mean score achieved by questionnaires, whilst MA2 considered the measure of association [odds ratio (OR)] between bruxism and quality of life.

Results

Seven studies were selected for qualitative synthesis. Three studies were selected for quantitative synthesis, which considered only oral health-related quality of life. In MA1 (three studies), the mean difference of the B-ECOHIS score was 2.12 (95% CI?=??0.095–4.377, p?=?0.061). MA2 (two studies) showed that bruxism is not associated with oral health-related quality of life in children and adolescents (OR?=?1.889, 95% CI?=?0.53–6.71, p?=?0.325).

Conclusion

Bruxism does not impact quality of life in children and adolescents. Further studies should consider other quality of life questionnaires to confirm the absence of association.

     

Does being bilingual in English and Chinese influence changes in quality of life scale scores? Evidence from a prospective,population based study

Background: Bilinguals differ from monolinguals in language use, but the influence of bilingualism on changes in Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) scores is not known. Objective: To determine the influence of bilingualism on changes in HRQoL scores. Research design: A prospective cohort study of a population-based, disproportionately stratified random sample of monolingual or bilingual ethnic Chinese who completed the Short-Form 36 Health Survey (SF-36) in English or Chinese twice in 2 years. Least squares regression models were used to assess the influence of bilingualism on SF-36 scores, while adjusting for the influence of questionnaire language and determinants of HRQoL. Results: Usable English and Chinese questionnaires were returned by 1013 and 910 subjects respectively (aged 21–65 years, 48.5% female, 52.8% bilingual). Bilinguals differed from monolinguals in known determinants of HRQoL (being younger and better educated), changes in determinants of HRQoL over 2 years (more bilinguals had changes in work or marital status) and had mean SF-36 scores that were up to 10 points higher than monolinguals. After adjusting for these differences, bilingualism did not influence 2 year change scores for any of 8 SF-36 scales. Conclusion: Bilingualism did not influence changes in HRQoL scores over 2 years in this large, population-based study of subjects fluent in English and/or Chinese (representing an alphabet and/or pictogram based language respectively).     

Predictors of quality of life among youths in foster care—a 5-year prospective follow-up study

Quality of Life Research - Few studies have investigated possible predictors of positive outcomes for youths in foster care. The aim of this prospective follow-up study was to examine quality of...     

Does quality of life feedback promote seeking help for undiagnosed cancer?

Quality of Life Research - Diagnosing cancer early is an imperative, as help-seeking delays affect survival. Quality of life (QoL) deteriorates after diagnosis, but decline may start when cancer is...     

Eating disorder features and quality of life: Does gender matter?

Purpose

This study examined whether gender moderates the associations between eating disorder features and quality-of-life impairment and whether eating disorder features can explain gender differences in quality of life in a sample of undergraduate students.

Methods

The SF-12 Physical and Mental Component Summary Scales were used to measure health-related quality of life (HRQoL), and the Eating Disorders Examination Questionnaire (EDE-Q) was used to quantify eating disorder behaviors and cognitions. These self-report forms were completed by undergraduate men and women (n = 709).

Results

Gender was a significant predictor of mental HRQoL, such that women in this sample reported poorer mental HRQoL than men. Eating disorder cognitions were the strongest predictor of undergraduate students’ mental and physical HRQoL, while binge eating negatively predicted their physical HRQoL only. Gender was not found to moderate the associations between eating disorder features and HRQoL, and eating disorder cognitions were found to mediate the association between gender and mental HRQoL such that a proportion of the difference between undergraduate men and women’s mental HRQoL was attributable to eating disorder cognitions.

Conclusion

This study provided further evidence of the significant impact of eating disorder features, particularly eating disorder cognitions, on HRQoL. The finding that gender did not moderate the relationships between eating disorder features and HRQoL indicates the importance of investigating these features in both men and women in future research.

     

Interviewer versus self-administered health-related quality of life questionnaires - Does it matter?

Background  

Patient-reported outcomes are measured in many epidemiologic studies using self- or interviewer-administered questionnaires. While in some studies differences between these administration formats were observed, other studies did not show statistically significant differences important to patients. Since the evidence about the effect of administration format is inconsistent and mainly available from cross-sectional studies our aim was to assess the effects of different administration formats on repeated measurements of patient-reported outcomes in participants with AIDS enrolled in the Longitudinal Study of Ocular Complications of AIDS.     

Does visual impairment affect social ties in late life? Findings of a multicenter prospective cohort study in Germany

Objective

To investigate how visual impairment affects social ties in late life longitudinally.

Design

Population-based prospective cohort study.

Setting

Individuals in old age were recruited via general practitioners’ offices (at six study centers) in Germany. They were interviewed every 18 months.

Participants

Individuals aged 75 years and above at baseline. Follow-up wave 2 (36 months after baseline, n=2,443) and wave 4 (72 months after baseline, n=1,618) were used for the analyses presented here.

Measurements

Social ties were assessed using the 14-item form of the questionnaire for social support (F-SozU K-14). Visual impairment was self-rated on a three level Likert scale (no impairment, mild visual impairment, or severe/profound visual impairment).

Results

Adjusting for sociodemographic factors, hearing impairment and comorbidity, fixed effects regressions revealed that the onset of mild visual impairment decreased the social support score, in particular the emotional support score. Additionally, the onset of mild hearing impairment decreased the social support score in men. Moreover, increasing age decreased the social support score in the total sample and in both sexes. Loss of spouse and increasing comorbidity did not affect the social support score.

Conclusion

Our results highlight the importance of visual impairment for social ties in late life. Consequently, appropriate strategies in order to delay visual impairment might help to maintain social ties in old age.

     

The impact of functional constipation on quality of life of middle-aged Black Americans: a prospective case–control study

Purpose

To quantify the impact of constipation on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in Black Americans.

Methods

Case?Ccontrol design. Black subjects referred for colon cancer screening with a Bristol Stool Score of 3?C5 for >75% of bowel movements served as controls. Frequency-matched functional constipation subjects had to fulfill Rome III criteria. Both groups completed demographic and health surveys. Short Form-36 assessed HRQoL.

Results

We recruited 102 constipated patients and 100 controls. The groups were well matched demographically. After adjustment for comorbidities, SF-36 scores for vitality, bodily pain, social functioning, and role-emotional were significantly lower in constipated patients. Unadjusted physical and mental component summary scores (PCS and MCS) were significantly higher in the control group (47.1?±?10.6 vs. 43.3?±?8.6; P?=?0.005 and 50.6?±?12.4 vs. 43.4?±?11.8; P?<?0.001, respectively). After adjustment for comorbidities, PCS differences were no longer significant (P?=?0.54); however, MCS differences were significant (P?=?0.004). Marginal mean scores for the MCS for controls and constipated subjects were 49.9?±?1.2 and 43.6?±?1.2, respectively. The presence of a comorbidity was independently associated with PCS (P?<?0.001) and MCS (P?=?0.026) results.

Conclusions

Functional constipation has a significant impact on HRQoL in middle-aged Black Americans, particularly in regard to mental well-being.     

Does quality of life among breast cancer survivors one year after diagnosis differ depending on urban and non-urban residence? A comparative study

Background  

This study examined the quality of life (QOL), measured by the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy (FACT) questionnaire, among urban (n = 277) and non-urban (n = 323) breast cancer survivors and women from the general population (n = 1140) in Queensland, Australia.     

Telemedicine for Facio-Scapulo-Humeral Muscular Dystrophy: A multidisciplinary approach to improve quality of life and reduce hospitalization rate?

Background

Facio-Scapulo-Humeral Muscular Dystrophy (FSHD) is an autosomal dominant inherited disorder characterized by a variable and asymmetric involvement of facial, trunk, upper and lower extremity muscles. Although respiratory weakness is a relatively unknown feature of FSHD, it is not rare. Telemedicine has been used in a variety of health care fields, but only recently, with the advent of sophisticated technology, its interest among health professionals became evident, even in such diseases.