Factors associated with health-related quality of life in adults with asthma. A cross-sectional study

• Published in: Multidisciplinary respiratory medicine Vol. 7; no. 1; p. 32
• Main Authors: Gonzalez-Barcala, Francisco-Javier, de la Fuente-Cid, Ramon, Tafalla, Mónica, Nuevo, Javier, Caamaño-Isorna, Francisco
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Italy BioMed Central Ltd 02.10.2012; BioMed Central; Mattioli 1885
• Subjects: Adults; Analysis; Asthma; Care and treatment; Health; Health aspects; Obesity; Original; Patient outcomes; Prevention; Quality of life; Risk factors; Smoking
• ISSN: 2049-6958; 1828-695X; 2049-6958
• DOI: 10.1186/2049-6958-7-32

The measurement of health-related quality of life (HRQoL) is increasingly recognized as an important endpoint, as a reflection of the effects of the disease from a patient perspective. Our aim was to evaluate the factors determining the HRQoL in patients with asthma, according to the EQ-5D questionnaire. Patients were included using multi-stage sampling, from Primary Care clinics from all the Autonomous Communities in Spain. The patients included were: over 18 years-old, with a confirmed diagnosis of asthma for at least one year, and had visited a Health Centre in the previous 2 years. The characteristics of the asthma disease, the adherence to treatment, the socio-demographic variables, the smoking habits, and the asthma control were collected using a questionnaire. The influence of the different variables included in the study on the EQ-5D was evaluated using multivariate logistic regression analysis. A total of 2,125 patients were finally included (57.7% females, mean age 48 years). The response rate was 95.4%. Some factors showed a considerable detrimental effect on the HRQoL of asthmatics. Advanced age, lower educational level and poor control of asthma are significantly associated with a worse quality of life in all the dimensions assessed by the EQ-5D scale. The baseline severity of the asthma, and having been admitted to hospital are related to a worse quality of life in 5 of the 6 dimensions analyzed. In our study, we could identify some factors related to quality of life in asthma patients. The most important were advanced age, lower education level, and poor control of the asthma.