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Background: The impact of medical intervention on a patient's quality of life (QoL) is more and more important. Treatment success is defined not only in terms of the success of the procedure performed but also with regard to its impact on different areas of the patient's life. The aim of the study was to assess the QoL of patients after cataract surgery and identify factors that affect it. Methods: Between January and March 2018, a survey was carried out among 100 patients who had undergone cataract surgery with intraocular lens implantation at the 'Spektrum' Clinical Ophthalmology Centre in Wrocław. The World Health Organization Quality of Life—BREF (WHOQOL-BREF) questionnaire and Illness Acceptance Scale (AIS) were used. Results: Most respondents (67%) rated their overall health as very good. The median score on the AIS was 34 (31.5–39), indicating a high level of illness acceptance. There was no statistically significant relationship (p > 0.05) between sex and QoL nor between the level of illness acceptance and QoL. We found no statistically significant relationships between place of residence and QoL (p > 0.05) nor between place of residence and AIS. Conclusions: The respondents reported the highest QoL scores for the environment domain and the lowest QoL scores for the social relationships domain. QoL had a positive impact on illness acceptance among the study patients. Younger patients (aged 50 or under) reported significantly higher scores for all the domains of QoL. Being employed was found to be associated with better QoL and greater illness acceptance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is a genetically determined disease primarily leading to muscle weakness, but now, it is considered a systemic disease with changes in various tissues and organs. In our study, we aimed to compare quality of life (QoL) outcomes in patients with SMA in relation to the degree of motor limitation and comorbidities, mainly internal medicine diseases. Methods: We included 35 adult patients with SMA and 36 healthy volunteers. Thorough medical histories were taken focusing on comorbidities, and neurological examinations incorporating assessments using functional motor scales were performed. QoL was assessed based on the World Health Organization Quality of Life Brief Version (WHOQOL-BREF) questionnaire. Results: SMA patients and controls were comparable in terms of scores in the questionnaire's main domains. SMA patients presented significantly higher levels of satisfaction with their medical care than controls. Patients with more advanced SMA had significantly better scores on certain questions, e.g., those related to health satisfaction or leisure activities. A total of 71.4% of SMA patients had comorbidities, ranging from one to three in individual patients. SMA patients with comorbidities did not show worse QoL. Negative correlations were found between the number of comorbidities in SMA patients and individual questions on the WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire. Conclusions: Patients with SMA were satisfied with their medical care. Better scores on some questions in more advanced SMA may have been due to better adaptation to disease-related limitations. The presence of single comorbidities did not affect QoL, but a higher number of comorbidities negatively correlated with QoL. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Oral health-related quality of life is a significant predictor of overall health and well-being. The aim was to validate the Romanian version of the WHOQOL-BREF as an instrument for measuring the quality of life of dental students. Material and method: Medical students from the fifth year of the Faculty of Dentistry, UMPh Grigore T. Popa Iasi, were invited to participate in the current study. Data were collected after completing the WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire, which consists of 26 items. Results: the average Cronbach’s alpha coefficient for the Global Quality of Life domain was 0.92 (p=0.026). Similarly, for the Global Health domain, the Cronbach’s alpha coefficient was 0.78, for the Physical Domain it was 0.84, and for the Psychological Domain it was 0.91. The Social Domain exhibited a Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of 0.71, while for the Environmental Domain it was 0.77. The intra-class correlation coefficient showed consistent values (p=0.000 – 0.035). Conclusion: WHOQOL-BREF is a reliable and valid instrument for measuring the quality of life of dental students.

Quality of life reflects the individual’s perception of his own well-being and overall satisfaction in various areas of his life. MATERIAL AND METHOD: 75 subjects were selected with ages between 17-56 years, in the period 2022-2023. The WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire was used to evaluate the quality of life, and the Corah score was used to determine the sense of safety and dental anxiety. RESULTS: The average value recorded was 3.87±0.684 for the way they perceive their own quality of life and 3.77±0.727 for the degree of satisfaction regarding their own state of health. The analysis of the correlations between the level of dental anxiety and the quality of life were positive at a p=0.01 value, these being stronger for domains 1, 2 and 4 and moderate for “Overall Quality of Life and General Health” and “social relationships”. DISCUSSIONS: the subjects participating in the study have a moderate degree of dental phobia and, in general, feel it more acutely in situations where they start to get sick or feel a sensation of suffocation. CONCLUSIONS: the results showed that the majority of subjects had a good quality of life and low levels of dental anxiety.

Objectives The aim of the study was assessment of the quality of life of patients infected with HIV. A short version of the WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire, developed by the World Health Organization, was used, which allows simultaneous evaluation of the quality of life in somatic, social, environmental and psychological spheres, and an author-constructed questionnaire. Material and methods The study group included 105 patients (x males, y females) infected with HIV. The quality of life was assessed using the short version of the WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire supplemented with an author-constructed questionnaire, which consisted of 21 closed questions. Results The WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire and authorconstructed questionnaire are reliable tools for the assessment of the quality of life in adults. The results obtained show the good quality of life of patients infected with HIV. Acceptance of own illness and permanent employment are the basic factors affecting the quality of life of HIV infected patients. Conclusions 1. The perceived state of the quality of life strongly depends on many factors, such as physical and family conditions and the attitude towards the patient. 2. Positive attitude and acceptance of one’s own illness has a great impact on further treatment and quality of life. 3. Support and assistance from the loved ones increases the sense of security of infected people and improves their quality of life. 4. The problem of discrimination and stigmatization still affects patients infected with HIV, resulting from insufficient knowledge in Polish society.

Introduction: The quality of a women's life is very closely related to their health. Oncogynecological disease brings substantial changes into their life that women need to adapt to them. As determination of quality of life is in nurse competence, the quality of life in women with diagnosed oncogynecological illness and surgical treatment has been described in the paper. Aim: The aim of the paper was to examine cancer's influence on the quality of life based on physical health, survival, social relationships, and the environmental domains. Methods: The sample consisted of 84 female respondents with surgical treatment of oncogynecological disease and the patients fulfilled the standardized WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire. Results: The results have shown that patients experienced significant reductions in the quality of life in regard to physical and mental health. Social and environmental domain were significantly less affected. Conclusions: The oncogynecoogical diseases significantly affect quality of life in all four investigated domains, but to a different extent. These findings emphasize an individual approach that takes into account not only the nursing aspect but also the ability to respond to a variety of other related factors that affect the quality of women with oncogynecological disease.

Abstract Background Human instinctively desire to have offspring. Infertility can cause painful emotional experiences throughout the life mainly known as quality of life impairment. This study aimed to investigate the impact of infertility on a woman’s quality of life. Methods A number of 180 infertile and 540 fertile women participated in this matched case-control study. The cases were selected through a combination of multistage stratified and cluster sampling methods. For each infertile woman three fertile women were randomly selected. The data gathering instrument consisted of demographic variables and the WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire. Data collection was conducted through interview with participants. The multivariate marginal model and SPSS software 21 were used for data analyses with a significance level of 0.05. Results The results of the multivariate modeling show infertility can potentially affect various aspects of women’s quality of life such as physical health (p

OBJECTIVE Investigation of the quality of life (QoL) of nursing staff in a Greek public hospital and its determinants. METHOD A cross-sectional study was conducted in a Greek regional public general hospital during November 2019 with a convenience sample of the nursing staff. QoL was assessed by the self-completed WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire of the World Health Organization. The independent variables were the demographic and professional characteristics of the participants (years of experience, income, shift work, etc.), and the dependent variable was QoL, according to the scores on WHOQOL-BREF. RESULTS The study population included 176 participants (response rate 88%). Cronbach's alpha coefficient was >0.7 for all the scales of the WHOQOL-BREF, indicating very good reliability of the questionnaire. The mean values on all the scales of the WHOQOL-BREF were high, indicating good to very good QoL of the nursing staff. Higher scores were recorded for social relationships, and then for physical health, mental health and environment. More hours of sleep and a higher educational level were associated with higher QoL. Participants that (a) took place in pleasurable leisure activities, (b) did not suffer from a chronic disease, (c) did not want to change their job, and (d) worked in a second job, recorded better QoL. CONCLUSIONS Various demographic and professional characteristics affect the QoL of nursing staff. Appropriate interventions should be introduced to promote the QoL of Greek nursing staff. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Purpose: This study (a) assessed quality of life (QoL) in a patient sample with severe mental illness in an integrated psychiatric care (IC) programme in selected regions in Germany, (b) compared QoL among diagnostic groups and (c) identified socio-demographic, psychiatric anamnestic and clinical characteristics associated with QoL. Methods: This cross-sectional study included severely mentally ill outpatients with substantial impairments in social functioning. Separate dimensions of QoL were assessed with the World Health Organisation's generic 26-item quality of life (WHOQOL-BREF) instrument. Descriptive analyses and analyses of variance (ANOVAs) were conducted for the overall sample as well as for diagnostic group. Results: A total of 953 patients fully completed the WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire. QoL in this sample was lower than in the general population (mean 34.1; 95% confidence interval (CI) 32.8 to 35.5), with the lowest QoL in unipolar depression patients (mean 30.5; 95% CI 28.9 to 32.2) and the highest in dementia patients (mean 53.0; 95% CI 47.5 to 58.5). Main psychiatric diagnosis, living situation (alone, partner/relatives, assisted), number of disease episodes, source of income, age and clinical global impression (CGI) scores were identified as potential predictors of QoL, but explained only a small part of the variation. Conclusion: Aspects of health care that increase QoL despite the presence of a mental disorder are essential for severely mentally ill patients, as complete freedom from the disorder cannot be expected. QoL as a patient-centred outcome should be used as only one component among the recovery measures evaluating treatment outcomes in mental health care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: In the second part of the study concerning epidural corticosteroid applications, the authors collected data from 289 patients who were divided into three groups: "adults" (A; N = 103), "seniors" (S; N = 64) and "seniors with chronic pain" (SCP; N = 118). Data were evaluated using the World Health Organization Quality of Life Questionnaire (WHOQOL-BREF). The aim of the study is to evaluate the impact of the root lumbar spine syndrome, most commonly due to the prolapse of the intervertebral disc, on the overall quality of life, physical and mental health of patients coming in for the epidural corticosteroid application. Patients and methods: The average age of the groups varies: 52.5 vs. 70.2 vs. 73 years. Otherwise, the groups are comparable to female representation and to pain rates of 4.7 on the Numeric Pain Rating Scale (NPRS). In addition, A and S groups are comparable in terms of the epidural corticosteroid application but they diff er in Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) - A = 30.8% and S = 40.6%, which is approximately in the centre and at the upper limit of the medium disability zone. Results: In all groups, the quality of life assessment and satisfaction with their health have a reduced value compared to the population norm, with the lowest rating found in the SCP group. In contrast to the population norm, the physical health domain rating is lower in all three groups, the A and S groups have the same rating of 21.39 and 21.41, resp., and the SCP group has a signifi cantly lower rating for this domain of 10.66. The A group has values comparable to the population norm in domains of mental health, social relationships and environment. The S group has a score lower than the population norm in these domains, the SCP group has a lower score in the mental health and environment domains, and in the socialdomain, the rating is higher than the population norm. Conclusion: Most foreign studies with patients indicated for epidural corticosteroid application use the Short Form-36 questionnaire to assess the quality of life in patients with chronic low back pain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) is a chronic disorder causing adrenal insufficiency and hyperandrogenism affecting the quality of life (QOL). The objective of the study was to assess the health-related QOL (HRQOL) in Egyptian children and adolescents with CAH and to identify factors affecting it. Methods: This cross-sectional study included 200 CAH patients (with 21-hydroxylase deficiency [21-OHD]) who were assessed according to their age, sex, clinical phenotype, timing of genitoplasty, hospital admissions within the last year, compliance to treatment, regularity of follow-up, presence of complications and hormonal control. HRQOL was assessed using the World Health Organization (WHO)QOL-BREF questionnaire with four domains analyzed independently including physical, psychological, social and environmental domains, with higher scores indicating better QOL. Results: The study included 140 females and 60 males with a mean age of 6.6 ± 4.5 years, and 88% were salt-wasting (SW). Older patients had significantly lower QOL scores (r = − 0.151, p = 0.033). The physical domain correlated significantly with the degree of virilization (r = − 0.491, p = 0.001) and frequency of hospitalization (r = − 0.495, p < 0.001). The psychological domain was affected by age (r = − 0.157, p = 0.026) and timing of genitoplasty (r = − 0.326, p = 0.001), while the social domain was affected by age (r = −0.277, p < 0.005) and pubertal stage (r = − 0.195, p = 0.006). Females had lower scores at the psychological domain (p < 0.001), whereas males had lower scores at the physical domain (p = 0.003). Salt-losing patients had lower scores at the physical domain (p = 0.001). Patients with good hormonal control had higher scores at the physical domain (p = 0.03). Genitoplasty affected both psychological and social domains (p = 0.003 and 0.01, respectively). Patients with hypertension and hirsutism had lower QOL scores (p < 0.05). Conclusions: HRQOL was relatively more affected in CAH patients with older age, poor hormonal control, high frequency of hospital admissions and those who developed complications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Ageing universally affects individual, family, community and society with reduction in quality of life on chronologic, biological, social, and psychological dimensions. Aim and Objectives: The study was done to assess quality of life in physical, psychological, social and environmental domains among elderly population in relation to sociodemographic character. Material and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among census population of 63 elderly individuals in Chanamana village, a community development block of Potia, Kishanganj, Bihar from 1st June –31st July 2014. By interview technique the quality of life was assessed using World Health Organization Quality of Life-BREF (WHOQOL-BREF) questionnaire. Mean score was computed and compared by Z -test and one-way ANOVA using SPSS software, version 19.0. Results: Among the study participants with alike gender distribution, majority (68.25% were in age group of 60-69 years, general caste (69.85%), joint family (84.12%) and residing with their children (82.54%). Of them 47.62 percent were illiterates and 42.86 percent were still earning. The mean score in the distinct four domains had no significant difference in genders and age groups. Yet, residing with children and belonging to joint family were noted to be significantly improving the scores in all the four domains. Mean scores were also significantly superior in physical, psychological and environmental domains among persons who were married and had their own income. Conclusion: The study showed the quality of life within diverse domains among elderly population need to be addressed with certain socio-demographic factors (joint family, marital status, own earning and children accompanying the geriatric population).

Evaluation and analysis in health care is a complex task that may involve handling uncertainties and trade-offs between multiple, often conflicting criteria. In the present paper, a multi-criteria weighting approach is proposed for evaluation and analysis of Quality of Life (QoL) criteria. Based on the evaluations of a group of experts and using a Rough Analytical Hierarchy Process (RAHP) weighting method, the QoL criteria weights are determined. The expert evaluation's uncertainty is modeled with the rough sets theory. The proposed approach is validated by a case study that performs an analysis of WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire criteria. In the case study, weights are calculated for physical health, psychological, social relations and environment criteria. A comparison between the RAHP weights obtained and the AHP weights is achieved. The result of the analysis shows that the order of importance of criteria from the most important to the least important is the following: physical health, psychological, social relations and environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To compare preoperative quality of life (QoL) scores using World Health Organization WHOQOL-BREF quality of life assessment with postoperative QoL scores following successful repair of genitourinary fistula. Patients and methods: The WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire was used as a tool to evaluate the quality of life before and after surgical repair. All patients, who underwent genitourinary fistula repair between January 2011 and December 2013 were included. Women with complaints of continuous leakage of urine per vagina following obstetric or gynaecological procedures were included in this study. Women with rectovaginal fistula, malignant fistula or radiation induced fistula were excluded from this study. Patients with co-morbidities affecting QoL and those who did not give consent to participate were excluded. Patients whose questionnaire was incomplete were also excluded. Results: Of the 106 women admitted for treatment of genitourinary fistula during the time period; 101 were included. The preoperative score of physical, psychological, social and environmental health domains were 15.04 ± 2.56, 16.42 ± 4.4, 51.75 ± 11.91 and 34.81 ± 6.89 respectively. The postoperative scores in physical, psychological, social and environmental health domains were 83.61 ± 5.09, 75.79 ± 6.33, 76.17 ± 8.53 and 33.88 ± 6.13 respectively. On comparison between the preoperative and postoperative QoL scores; there was significant improvement in physical, psychological and social health domains in the postoperative period (p

Background: Hypertension is one of the most important risk factors for cardiovascular disease, which contributes to lowering the quality of life (QOL), especially in elderly patients. Recent data show that almost half of the hypertensive patients and one-third of patients with comorbidities were nonadherent to medication. Objective: To assess the association of QOL with the level of adherence and to examine the association with selected variables on the level of adherence. Design: A prospective, cross-sectional, and analytical study. Methods: This study involved 186 hypertensive elderly patients (mean age: 71.05±7.47 years). An analysis of medical records based on sociodemographic and clinical data was conducted. The World Health Organization Quality of Life Scale Brief version (WHOQOL-BREF) was used to assess the level of QOL, and the Hill-Bone Compliance to High Blood Pressure Therapy Scale (HBQ) was used to examine the level of adherence to therapeutic recommendations in hypertensive patients. Results: The average assessment of the QOL measured by the WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire was 3.36±0.84 points, which indicates a QOL at a level between average and good. The patients' average score on the HBQ questionnaire was 20.39±4.31 points. In the "reduced sodium intake" subscale, patients had an average of 4.75±1.33 points. In the "appointment keeping" subscale, the patients scored an average of 3.45±1.07 points. In the "medication taking" subscale, the patients had an average of 12.19±3.46 points. It was shown that the total score of the HBQ questionnaire was negatively correlated with all domains of QOL assessed with the WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire (P<0.05). Conclusion: There is an association between QOL and adherence to therapeutic recommendations among hypertensive elderly patients. It has been concluded that with an increasing QOL, the level of adherence to therapeutic recommendations increases. The level of adherence is also negatively affected by: older age, longer duration of disease, worse marital status, lower education, living alone, and using polytherapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Health-related quality of life (QoL) is an acknowledged index of treatment effectiveness. There are several methods of its evaluation which are predisposed to different risk of bias. Aim: To investigate the agreement between objective and subjective tools of QoL assessment in patients who underwent endoscopic atraumatic coronary artery bypass (EACAB) grafting. Material and methods: This prospective observational study covered 705 consecutive patients who underwent EACAB between April 1998 and December 2010. Quality of life was assessed in a follow-up of 2132 ±1313 days among 482 subjects using the WHOQoL-BREF questionnaire as an objective tool and the Likert scale as a more subjective method. Results: There was good agreement between a 5-step Likert scale and a 5-step BREF Q1 ('overall quality of life') and Q2 ('general health') with a concordance correlation coefficient of CCC = 0.64 (95% CI: 0.58-0.69) and CCC = 0.49 (95% CI: 0.43- 0.55), respectively. There was also a statistically significant correlation between answers reported using the Likert scale and all domains of BREF: physical health (R = 0.54, p < 0.001), psychological health (R = 0.56, p < 0.001), social relationships (R = 0.45, p < 0.001) and environment (R = 0.56, p < 0.001). Conclusions: The Likert scale is useful in QoL assessment in patients after minimally invasive coronary surgery. This simple and easy-to-use screening method may be used interchangeably with a more reliable but also more complex questionnaire tool. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: It appears particularly suitable to measure healthrelated quality of life (HRQoL) in patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA) because the chronic debilitating nature of this disease likely takes a considerable toll on HRQoL. The study aims to assess the health-related quality of life in patients with symptomatic knee osteoarthritis attending the two outpatient clinics. The study also aimed to determine factors affecting the HRQoL in patients with knee OA., Methods: A facility based, cross sectional descriptive study using the abbreviated World Health Organisation Quality of Life (WHOQOL-BREF) (26-item) questionnaire was carried out in two out-patient (general and orthopaedic) clinics of the University Teaching Hospital, Jos, Nigeria over a period of two months. The medical assistants, record staffs and nurses were involved in recruiting the patients while the Family Physicians performed the interview., Results: A total of 120 participants were recruited. The mean age was 58.41±13.03 years and the majority of the respondents were female, constituting 102 (85%) of the participants. The mean body mass index (BMI) was 30.83±7.12 kg/m2 and more than half of the participants were obese. The most common associated chronic disease was hypertension, reported by 93(77.5%). A majority, 86(72%) of the respondents reported their overall QoL and General Health (GH) as poor or fair and all the domains (physical, psychological, social relationships, and environmental) of the QoL were low. QoL scores were relatively low for domain due to psychological health and environment with that of psychological health being more severely affected. Epilepsy was found to affect QoL in patients with knee OA (p= 0.022). There was no significant effect of age, sex, educational status, employment status, marital status, and family income on QoL., Conclusion: This study has shown that patients with knee OA attending the outpatient clinics in JUTH, Jos have relatively poor HRQoL with the domain due to psychological health being more severely affected., Competing Interests: The Authors declare that no competing interest exists., (Copyright © 2023 by West African Journal of Medicine.)

Objectives: The aim of this paper is to identify the factors that determine the environmental domain of quality of life in economically active adults living in the industrial agglomeration in Poland. Materials and Methods: During the crosssectional epidemiological study conducted among the economically active population aged 45–60, we used a short version of the WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire. Respondents were recruited randomly from selected factories located in the Silesian Agglomeration. The statistical analysis used descriptive and analytical methods available in the Statistica 9.0 software. Results: The results confi rmed the statistically signifi cant association between marital status, type of occupational activity, declared health status, and the environmental domain of quality of life in economically active inhabitants of the Silesian Agglomeration. The best qualities of life in the environmental domain were those of married people, white collars, and persons who declared their health status to be the best. Conclusions: The major determinants of environmental quality of life in economically active population living in the industrial agglomeration include non-occupational factors, such as marital status and current health status, while a signifi cantly better quality of life was associated with being a white-collar worker and not living in the vicinity of the road with heavy traffi c. The results may be useful for future planned activities intended to improve the health and the quality of working life.

Background: The World Health Organization Quality of Life Questionnaire (WHOQOL)-BREF is one of the most known general questionnaires for assessment of quality of life (QOL) in both healthy populations and in various diseases subgroups. The aim of the present study was to examine the construct validity of this questionnaire in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) using factor analysis. Methods: Two hundred and seventy-five patients aged 35-80 years old with the diagnosis of CAD admitted to the Tehran Heart Center operating room for coronary artery bypass were consecutively entered into the study. QOL was assessed using the WHOQOL-BREF. To estimate the reliability of the QOL questionnaire, Cronbach′s a coefficient was measured. To assess the structure of the questionnaire, we firstly performed confirmatory factor analysis to test the hypothesized factor models. Exploratory factor analysis was then performed using the principal component method with varimax rotation. Results: Reliability of the questionnaire was low (Cronbach′s a for different domains ranged from 0.24 to 0.74). In confirmatory factor analysis, only the 1-factor model indicated a good fit to the data. The exploratory factor analysis indicated a five-factor solution that jointly accounted for 55.7% of the variance observed. Also, the pattern of item loading was very different from the original structure of the questionnaire. Conclusions: The findings suggest that the WHOQOL-BREF might only be a measure of the overall QOL in patients with CAD, and is not a suitable instrument for measuring the different QOL dimensions as expected in this population.

Introduction: Society plays an important role in determining quality of life of human beings particularly in case of loneliness, physical inability and loss of income. In this background there is a great role of social interaction in improving quality of life of geriatric population. Methodology: This community-based interventional longitudinal study was done among the study population using Quality of Life Questionnaire developed by World Health Organization (WHOQOL-BREF) by conducting interviews by house to house visit. The selected study subjects according to gender and place of residence were told to conduct regular social interaction session as per their convenient time and place. After 8 weeks of social interaction sessions again the participants were asked about their quality of life by conducting interviews using WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire. Results: It was found that mean transformed scores of quality of life improved significantly in all domains after social interaction as compared to score at the beginning of the study. Further, the difference of score (before and after social interaction) was significantly higher among those who attended social interaction session for more number of days. Conclusion: Social interaction has a significant role in improving the quality of life of elderly people.

Aim. To compare the quality of life (QoL) of Arab mothers in Kuwait who had children with chronic disabilities and those whose children had no disabilities and provide recommendations for how occupational therapists can assist in enhancing the mothers’ QOL.Methods. The case group included 71 mothers of children with chronic disabilities and a control group of 86 mothers of children without disabilities. Mothers’ QoL was assessed using the Arabic WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire and the support systems of mothers of children with disabilities using a support questionnaire.Results. The QoL of mothers of children with disabilities was significantly lower than that of mothers of healthy children (p< .001) in all four domains of WHOQOL-BREF (physical health, psychological wellbeing, social relationships, and environment). Mothers of children with disabilities reported that they received most support from their nuclear family. There was a lack of formal support systems in place in Kuwait.Conclusion. Mothers of children with disabilities perceive their QoL as poor and they have limited support systems. Occupational therapists are encouraged to serve as a resource for families, sharing information including available services and community resources, and supporting mothers as competent caregivers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: The present study aims at investigating different dimensions of the Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQOL) and its determinants among type II diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) referred to diabetes clinic in Ardabil.Methods: The present study was conducted through a cross-sectional method in which 300 people with T2DM were selected using a convenience sampling method between January and May 2014. Data were collected through 26-item structured and WHOQOL-BREF questionnaires. Data analysis was performed using descriptive and analytical statistical methods, independent t-test, Mann Whitney test, ANOVA, Kruskal Wallis, Welch test, and multivariable linear regression model using SPSS (V.20).Results: The mean age of the participants was 54.13±9.13, and about 72% of the patients were women. The mean score of the total HRQOL was 53.07±17.09; the highest score of HRQOL was related to the environmental domain (57.10±10.52) and the lowest to the dimension of social health (45.68±17.25). Based on multivariable linear regression, total QOL was influenced by gender, marital status, MHI, and comorbid renal disease. PH Dimension was associated with MHI and neuropathy; PSH with education level, comorbid depression, comorbid renal, and other disease; SR with marital, comorbid renal, and other disease; EH with marital status, Monthly household income (MHI), and education level.Conclusion: According to the results of this study, Predictors of the HRQOL in T2DM are associated with demographic and socioeconomic factors, comorbidities, and with less impact, diabetes complications, respectively. Moreover, diabetic patients had moderate HRQOL, and compared with men, scores of all domains were lower in women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The current study tried to evaluate the quality of life (QOL) of phenylketonuria (PKU) patients residing in Tehran, Iran and it also tried to determine the average quality of life of patients. Various aspects of QOL have been analyzed depending on gender, age, and educational levels of the subjects. Methods: The sample of the study consisted of late-diagnosed PKU patients who were referred to Mofid Children's Medical Center as well as to Ali-Asghar Hospitals in order to receive metabolic diets on a one year period starting from spring 2013 to spring 2014. Due to the limited study population, subjects were selected via census, therefore 82 patients were enrolled. The research material consisted of the Persian edition of World Health Organization Quality of Life questionnaire (WHOQOL-BREF), designed to examine physical, mental, social and environmental health. The data was gathered on two levels-descriptive and inferential- by using the SPSS software, V.20. Results: Results indicated that the low quality of life in the late-diagnosed patients suffering from PKU, with mental, physical, social, and environmental aspects, was below the average. Still, even if it was not gender dependent, QOL was greatly influenced by the educational level of the patients. Moreover, it was discovered that the mental health of the patients above 40 years old was significantly lower than the other age groups. Conclusions: According to the findings of this study, it was recommended that special attention should be given to the improvement of the social and mental health of PKU patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives The aim of this study was to examine different domains of quality of life ( QOL) and their relationship to sociodemographic characteristics among older people in an urban slum in India. Materials and Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted ( n = 120). Selected individuals were interviewed, and their QOL was assessed by the World Health Organization Quality of Life- BREF questionnaire. Statistical analysis was then performed. Results Of those included in the study population, 61.7% were men, all were Hindus, 46.7% were members of the general caste, 19.2% were illiterate, 35% were unemployed, and 72.5% lived with their joint family (i.e. extended family). Mean scores in each domain studied did not significantly differ between the sexes, age groups, castes, and family types. Subjects with more education, who were married, and with greater income had significantly better QOL scores. Mean scores were also better in certain domains among persons who had their own income and who resided with their children. Conclusion Having low education, being single, lacking personal income, and not living with their children significantly reduced QOL in the elderly subjects. Attention should be given to these factors to help elderly individuals age in a healthy manner. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Due to the increasing outbreak of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and its relation to hospital costs and disruptions to quality of life, this study is an attempt to investigate patient quality of life and its relationship with IBS according to the results of the WHQOL-BREF Questionnaire. Materials and Methods: This descriptive-analytic, cross-sectional study enrolled 250 patients and 250 healthy participants who referred to the Gastroenterology Clinic of Sina Hospital, affiliated with Tehran University of Medical Sciences during 2012. The diagnosis of IBS was determined by a gastrointestinal expert based on ROME-III Criteria. Then, the study was explained to participants prior to administration of this questionnaire. Results: The level of life quality in patients with IBS was less than the control group. There was no significant difference between groups in terms of age, gender, education level, marital status, and place of residency. There was no significant difference in the above factors among patients in the subgroups of IBS. Regression analysis between quality of life and independent variables showed a correlation between quality of life to severity of IBS symptoms and disease duration. Conclusion: The results of the study indicated that quality of life correlated with severity of symptoms and disease duration. The quality of life in IBS patients can be enhanced by efficiently controlling symptoms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: The aim of the study was to determine the quality of life of patients with diabetic foot syndrome in selected health care facilities in the Moravian-Silesian Region using the standardized WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire. Methods: A Czech version of the standardized WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire was used to determine the quality of life of patients with diabetic foot syndrome. The sample consisted of 84 patients. The results were compared with the population norm. Data were collected from November 2012 to February 2013 in selected health care facilities in the Moravian-Silesian Region: University Hospital Ostrava, Municipal Hospital Ostrava and Frydek-Mistek Hospital. Results: Patients with diabetic foot ulcers were found to have a poorer quality of life in the domain of physical health. In domain 1 (physical health) respondents rated as „worst‟ the following items: “dependence on medical care” (2.54), “pain and discomfort” (2.76); while in domain 2 (perception), “negative feelings” (2.94) merited a rating of “worst”. Being female, being over 75 years of age, and having a higher grade of ulcer (grades 3 and 4 according to Wagner´s classification) correlated with lower scores in all quality of life domains. Conclusion: Diabetic foot ulcer has a negative effect on health-related quality of life, particularly in the domain of physical health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The World Health Organization Quality of Life Questionnaire (WHOQOL)-BREF is one of the most known general questionnaires for assessment of quality of life (QOL) in both healthy populations and in various diseases subgroups. The aim of the present study was to examine the construct validity of this questionnaire in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) using factor analysis. Methods: Two hundred and seventy-five patients aged 35-80 years old with the diagnosis of CAD admitted to the Tehran Heart Center operating room for coronary artery bypass were consecutively entered into the study. QOL was assessed using the WHOQOL-BREF. To estimate the reliability of the QOL questionnaire, Cronbach's α coefficient was measured. To assess the structure of the questionnaire, we firstly performed confirmatory factor analysis to test the hypothesized factor models. Exploratory factor analysis was then performed using the principal component method with varimax rotation. Results: Reliability of the questionnaire was low (Cronbach's α for different domains ranged from 0.24 to 0.74). In confirmatory factor analysis, only the 1-factor model indicated a good fit to the data. The exploratory factor analysis indicated a five-factor solution that jointly accounted for 55.7% of the variance observed. Also, the pattern of item loading was very different from the original structure of the questionnaire. Conclusions: The findings suggest that the WHOQOL-BREF might only be a measure of the overall QOL in patients with CAD, and is not a suitable instrument for measuring the different QOL dimensions as expected in this population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on a study which aims to examine the factors that determine the environmental domain of quality of life in economically active adults living in the industrial agglomeration in Poland. Materials and methods of the study are presented during the cross-sectional epidemiological study conducted among the economically active population. It also presents the statistical analysis which used descriptive and analytical methods available in the Statistica 9.0 software.

Quality of life (QOL) is a complex concept comprised of biopsychosocial, spiritual and environmental dimensions. However, the majority of research addresses only its physical function perspectives. This two-part series examines the holistic perspective of QOL of patients after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Part 1 explains the research process of a cross-sectional descriptive study and its limitations. Data were collected by a mailed WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire in Maltese from a systematic sample of patients who had undergone PCI; the response rate was 64% (n=228; males n=169, females n=59, age 40-89 years). Part 1 also considers limitations, such as its cross-sectional design and retrospective data collection. The hierarchy of human needs theory (Maslow, 1999) guided the study. Part 2 gives the findings on the holistic view of QOL. Having social and family support, as a characteristic of Maltese culture appeared to contribute towards a better QOL. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A Quantitative study was done to analysis Quality of Life (QOL) between Iranian and Malay postgraduate students in Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM). For this purpose, data were elicited from 35 Iranian and 35 Malay students through a WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire. WHOQOL-BREF has 26 questions and four broad domains namely: Physical health, Psychological, Social Relationships and Environmental domains. Sample characteristics were determined using means and standard deviation and Independent t-tests uses to consider differences for the domain of QOL in two groups of postgraduate students. The participants were of the same language proficiency. Results showed that the internal consistencies (Cronbach alpha) in physical health, psychological, social Relationships and environmental domains are 0.74, 0.79, 0.61, and 0.72, respectively. Moreover, domains are evaluated 60.5 ±10.6, 62.9±11.3, 64.5±14.5, 60.2±10.1 for Malay postgraduate students, and 66.5±13.5, 64.5±16.1, 63.6±17.7, 59.4±13.4 for Iranian postgraduate students, respectively. According to these results, the physical domain is only significant between two groups (P<0.008). Furthermore, our study indicates QOL is in the middle level (50 - 75 %) for all postgraduate students. This study provides comprehensive information that can be applied to improve education quality in national and international students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Certain difficulties in daily life activities appear and quality of life (QoL) begins to deteriorate with old age. This study aimed at determining QoL and activities of daily living (ADL) of elderly people in rural areas of Eskişehir, and at identifying applicable factors in this regard. Cross-sectional study managed to reach 1301 (81.3%) of elderly people. Face-to-face interviews and the WHOQOL-BREF QoL scale and questionnaire were applied to evaluate daily life activities, as well as instrumental activities all of which contained sociodemographic features. WHOQOL-BREF life quality scale comprised of four domains with grades between 0 and 20. Those who received help from others in the execution of these activities were labelled as “dependent”, those who received partial aid during the execution of these activities were labelled as “partially dependent”, and those who did not receive any help in their daily activities were labelled as “independent” individuals. Average age of 1301 people contacted was 71.52±5.18 (ranging 65–91 years); 675 of them were women (51.9%), 626 were men (48.1%). Three hundred and eighty-seven of these elderly people (29.7%) had no medically diagnosed illnesses, whereas 18 of them (1.4%) were bedridden. With older age, with the exception of social and environmental areas, life quality got even worse in women, widows, illiterates, bedridden and those with medically diagnosed diseases. As women were more dependent on issues such as housework, shopping, traveling, transporting and bathing, men were more dependent on areas such as meal preparation. No distinction between men and women were identified in areas such as dressing, toilet use, urine and bowel continence and eating. As a conclusion, in cases where medically diagnosed diseases were present, quality of life in women that were dependent somehow in daily activities was worse. It was concluded that medicosocial services for the elderly would be prioritized and studies on chronic diseases would be re-evaluated. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

To investigate the incidence of acute toxicity of radiotherapy, evaluate quality of life (QOL) and identify its predictors in a cohort of gynecologic cancer patients. A longitudinal prospective study was conducted including 107 women between the ages of 18 and 75 years with cervical or endometrial cancer. Acute toxicity was evaluated according to the Common Toxicity Criteria and the Radiotherapy Oncology Group toxicity criteria. QOL was measured with World Health Organization’s Quality of Life instrument-abbreviated version (WHOQOL-BREF) before and at completion of radiotherapy and during the first clinical follow-up visit. QOL scores were assessed by ANOVA for repeat measures. Percentage variation of QOL scores from the time before radiotherapy to the first clinical visit was compared with control variables by the Wilcoxon test. Multiple linear regression analysis was used to identify predictors of QOL. Ninety-five women completed the three QOL assessments. The incidence of acute toxicity was 93.5% and the most common complaint was lower gastrointestinal (79.6%). A significant increase in QOL scores was observed in the physical and psychological domains, as well as general health and overall QOL. Upper gastrointestinal toxicity ( p = 0.043) and surgery ( p = 0.027) negatively affected general health, while improvement in vaginal bleeding ( p = 0.047) positively influenced general health. A high incidence of acute toxicity of radiotherapy was observed. At the completion of treatment, QOL improved in gynecologic cancer patients. Women with upper gastrointestinal toxicity and history of surgery are at risk for having a worse QOL. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To evaluate quality of life (QOL) and identify its associated factors in a cohort of women with gynecologic cancer. A cross-sectional study was conducted, including 103 women with cervical or endometrial cancer, aged between 18 and 75 years who were receiving their entire treatment at the institution where the investigation was carried out. QOL was measured by the World Health Organization’s QOL instrument-abbreviated version (WHOQOL-BREF). Clinical and sociodemographic characteristics, in addition to prevalence of cancer-related symptoms prior to radiotherapy were investigated. Bivariate analysis was performed, applying the Mann–Whitney test. Multivariate analysis was used to identify factors associated with QOL. The mean age of the participants was 56.8 ± 11.6 years. The study included 67 (65%) women with cervical cancer and 36 (35%) women with endometrial cancer. Most participants were at an advanced stage (63.1%). The most common complaints were pain (49.5%) and vaginal bleeding (36.9%). The prevalence of anemia was 22.3%. On multivariate analysis, it was observed that anemia ( P = 0.006) and nausea and/or vomiting ( P = 0.010) determined impairment in physical domain. Pain negatively influenced physical domain ( P = 0.001), overall QOL ( P = 0.024), and general health ( P = 0.013), while the history of surgery positively affected general health ( P = 0.001). Cancer-related symptoms were factors that most interfered with QOL in women with gynecologic cancer. Therefore, more attention should be focused on identifying these symptoms, adopting measures to minimize their repercussions on QOL. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Physical activity increases human health potential and has an impact on achieving a higher quality of life in society. The aim of our research was to determine the relationship between a physically active lifestyle and the quality of life of female students in the context of demographic and social factors (major, age, marital status, professional activity). The research was conducted among a group of 285 women studying physical culture and social sciences in Poznań and Szczecin (Poland). Average age: 22.7 ± 4.90. The standardized World Health Organization Quality of Life-BREF (WHQOL-BREF) questionnaire was used to assess the quality of life of female students, and the original survey technique was used to study the lifestyle of people undertaking physical activity in the context of socio-demographic factors. Nonparametric statistics were applied in the analyses of the results. The effect size was calculated for each test: E 2 R for the Kruskal-Wallis H test, Glass rank biserial correlation (rg) for the Mann-Whitney U test, and Cramér's V for the χ 2 test. The value of p ≤0.05 was assumed to be a significant difference. In the study, it was shown that a higher overall quality of life and health satisfaction, as well as better results in the physical, psychological, and environmental domains, were achieved by female students who assessed their lifestyle as physically active in comparison to those physically inactive. Higher scores of overall quality of life and satisfaction with health were found among female students of physical education and people participating in physical recreation, who also achieved better results in the environmental domain. Female students aged 23-25 had a higher quality of life in the physical, psychological, and social domains. Having a partner or spouse had a positive effect on the quality of life of female students defined by the social domain. A higher overall quality of life and satisfaction with health were characteristic of people who were employed. In the search of factors positively influencing the quality of life of society, it seems necessary to promote a physically active lifestyle among students. The observed differences in the quality of life and health satisfaction of female students of selected majors require targeted programs and interventions that improve the quality of their lives at various stages of their studies. Such activities increase the health potential of the individual and society, not only in the biological, but also psychosocial dimension.