ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: There has been no data on health related quality of life (HRQOL) in general Korean population. Assessing factors affecting HRQOL in Koreans is fundamental in HRQOL research. The objective of this study is to assess HRQOL in Korean using Korean version of EQ-5D (KEQ-5D). METHODS: HRQOL was assessed using KEQ-5D from 1,044 randomly selected population representing general Korean population with telephone interview RESULT: The mean KEQ-5D utility score in Korean was 0.88 (range: -0.59~1.00). Sociodemographic data showed relatively higher score in male, younger, well educated, higher income, and white color people. Among a variety of diseases, gastric ulcer/gastritis, arthritis, hypertension diabetes, low back pain were common in Korea. The most significant chronic diseases influencing Koreans were gastrointestinal disorder and arthritis. CONCLUSION: This paper suggests basic information on HRQOL in Korean and can be a useful parameter in comparison in the future research.