Evaluación funcional y de calidad de vida en el seguimiento de pacientes con artropatía de Charcot tratados mediante artrodesis de tobillo con clavo centromedular retrógrado bloqueado / Functional evaluation and quality of life in the follow-up of patients with Charcot arthropathy treated by ankle arthrodesis with a locked retrograde nail

Resumen: Introducción: la artropatía de Charcot es una condición incapacitante, no infecciosa, progresiva, que se caracteriza por destrucción ósea y articular en pacientes con neuropatía sensorial. En casos avanzados, en los que se tiene deformidad severa e inestabilidad de tobillo, se requieren procedimientos más invasivos como la artrodesis de tobillo con clavo centromedular retrógrado bloqueado. Se desconoce si en estos pacientes las puntuaciones de la valoración funcional postquirúrgica con la escala de AOFAS (American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society) correlaciona con las puntuaciones de la escala de calidad de vida medida con el test EuroQol-5D y las posibles complicaciones postquirúrgicas. Material y métodos: se trata de un ensayo autocontrolado de práctica clínica habitual, cuasiexperimental, longitudinal y prospectivo con recolección ambispectiva (retrospectiva y prospectiva) de datos para evaluar los resultados funcionales y de calidad de vida a un año de seguimiento de los pacientes con artropatía de Charcot tratados mediante artrodesis de tobillo con clavo centromedular retrógrado bloqueado del 1 de Enero de 2010 al 1 de Noviembre de 2018. Resultados: la consolidación se logró en nueve casos de un total de 11 pacientes para una tasa de éxitos de 81.8% y únicamente dos casos (18.2%) en los cuales no se observó consolidación. Las escalas de AOFAS y EuroQol-5D se correlacionaron positivamente de acuerdo con la correlación de Pearson. Conclusiones: las escalas de AOFAS y EuroQol-5D se correlacionan positivamente, obteniéndose 45 y 63% con resultados aceptables y satisfactorios respectivamente en ambas escalas.

Abstract: Introduction: Charcot's arthropathy is a disabling non-infectious, progressive condition characterized by bony and articular destruction in patients with sensory neuropathy. In advanced cases with deformities and ankle instability, it requires a more invasive treatment as an ankle fusion with a retrograde locked intramedullary nail. It is unknown if, in these patients, the functional results of AOFAS (American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society) correlate with the quality of life ones from the EuroQol-5D test and the possible postoperative complications. Material and methods: the design is experimental, longitudinal prospective with ambispective data analysis (retrospective and prospective) to evaluate the functional results and life quality with a year of following patients with Charcot's arthropathy diagnosis treated with a retrograde locked nail from January 1, 2010, to November 1, 2018. Results: this study resulted in complete consolidation from nine out of 11 cases, with a success rate of 81.2%, and only two cases (18.2%) developed nonunion. AOFAS and EuroQol-5D tests correlate positively in agreement with the Pearson correlation. Conclusions: AOFAS and EuroQol-5D correlate positively, having a 45 and 63% of acceptable and satisfactory results, respectively, for both tests.

Factors affecting the health-related quality of life among urban adults in Hangzhou City / 预防医学

Objective@#To investigate the health-related quality of life and its influencing factors among urban adults in Hangzhou City, so as to provide the evidence for formulation and assessment of health policy. @*Methods@#A total of 1 800 permanent residents at ages of 18 to 64 years were sampled from Gongshu and Xihu districts, Hangzhou City using a stratified cluster random sampling method from May to August 2022. The health-related quality of life was measured with the EuroQol five-dimensional questionnaire (EQ-5D-5L), and factors affecting health-related quality of life were identified with a Tobit regression model.@*Results@#A total of 1 624 valid questionnaires were recovered, with a response rate of 90.22%, and the respondents included 693 men (42.67%) and 931 women (57.33%). The proportions of difficulty in mobility, self-care, usual activities, pain/discomfort, and anxiety/depression were 1.23%, 0.43%, 0.74%, 11.15% and 8.56%, and the median (interquartile range) of health state utility value and EuroQol Visual Analogue Scale (EQ-VAS) score were 1 (0) and 90 (15) points, respectively. Female (β=-0.050), age of 45 to 64 years (β=-0.067) and development of chronic disease (one chronic disease: β=-0.036; two and more chronic diseases: β=-0.090) were factor affecting of health state utility values, and age of 35 to 44 years (β=-1.945) and 45 to 64 years (β=-3.459), unemployment (β=-1.913), development of chronic disease (one chronic disease: β=-3.444; two and more chronic diseases: β=-8.529), high-level physical activity (β=2.355) and overweight/obesity (β=-1.456) were factors affecting the EQ-VAS score. @*Conclusions @#The overall health related quality of life is relatively good among urban adults in Hangzhou City. Gender, age, employment, physical activity, presence of chronic diseases and overweight/obesity may be associated with health-related quality of life among urban adults in Hangzhou City.

Comparison Between EuroQol Five-Dimensional Questionnaire and Short-Form 6-Dimension Health Survey for the Populations in China:A Scoping Review / 中国医学科学院学报

Objective By review of the studies comparing the measurements properties of EuroQol five-dimensional questionnaire (EQ-5D) and short-form 6-dimension health survey (SF-6D) in Chinese populations,this study aims to provide a reference for selecting,applying,and improving the health-related quality of life and health utility measurement tools for Chinese populations.Methods We retrieved the original studies which compared the two tools from both Chinese and English databases and then summarized the findings of the included studies from the measurement properties.Results A total of 12 studies were screened out,including 9 studies about diseased populations and 3 studies about the general populations.The included studies generally demonstrated that both EQ-5D and SF-6D had good feasibility,while the utility scores generated from them cannot be used interchangeably.For the diseased populations,both EQ-5D and SF-6D and their utility scores had good construct validity,including convergent and known-groups validity,while only the utility scores had good construct validity for the general populations.For the diseased populations,SF-6D had smaller ceiling effect and better sensitivity than EQ-5D-3L,while the comparison results between SF-6D and EQ-5D-5L were inconsistent.For the general populations,SF-6D also had better sensitivity than EQ-5D.In addition,there was little comparative evidence for reliability such as test-retest reliability and responsiveness between SF-6D and SF-6D in the two populations.Conclusion This review summarized the characteristics,methods,results,and conclusions of the studies that directly compared the two tools for the populations in China.Although only the studies directly comparing EQ-5D and SF-6D are included in this review,the common findings in these studies provide a basis for better comparison between the two in the future.

Determinants of quality of life among COVID-19 patients in Southwestern region of Bangladesh

Objectives: The outbreak of COVID-19 has caused an unprecedented health crisis and dramatically changed human lives. This study aims to identify risk factors related to health-related quality of life (HRQoL) among COVID-19 patients who were discharged from the hospital. Material and Methods: A total of 557 COVID-19 patients of Jhenaidah district of Bangladesh who had tested positive before February 1 of 2021 were selected for this cross-sectional study. The EuroQol 5-dimensional-5 level questionnaire was used to measure the HRQoL. Thai value set was used to assess the full health status. Chi-square test was used to find out the association of HRQoL with sociodemographic and clinical factors. Finally, logistic regression was used to find out the predictors of the dimensions of HRQoL. Results: Using the Thai value set, it is observed that 57.27% of participants had reported that they had experienced moderate or severe health problems. About 40.57% of the respondent reported anxiety or depression, whereas 39.14% of the participants had experienced moderate or severe pain or discomfort. The result of the logistic regression showed that age, gender, occupation, place of care, heart problems, and diabetes significantly affect various dimensions of the HRQoL. Conclusion: The COVID-19 significantly depletes the health condition of the patients in both mental and physical aspects. Therefore, the policy-makers and government should need to come with comprehensive strategies to reduce the psychological and physical health woe of COVID-19 patients.

Exploration on the effects and value of new cognitive dimension of EQ- 5D-5L in rural population of Guizhou / 中国药房

OBJECTIVE To provide re ference for accurate measurem ent of population health status ，pharmacoeconomic evaluation and guidance of health resource allocation. METHODS Using quota and convenient sampling ，five administrative villages were selected from the rural areas under the jurisdiction of Liuzhi special zone ，Qianxi city and Jianhe county of Guizhou province from July to September 2020. Based on the gender and age ratio quota of rural population in the results of the national census，330 respondents were selected for questionnaire survey. The contents of the questionnaire included the self-made scale containing sociodemographic characteristics and general health information ，five-level EuroQoL five-dimension questionnaire （EQ-5D-5L，hereinafter referred to as the “new dimension scale ”）with cognitive dimensions （including attention ，memory， computing ability and learning ability ）and mini-mental state examination （MMSE）. The effects of reliability ，validity and new dimensions of new dimension scale on respond ents’quality of life were investigate ，and its measurement characteristics were verified；the application value of it in pharmacoeconomic hy_cheer@126.com evaluation and guiding the allocation of health resources were explored. RESULTS A total of 330 questionnaires weredistributed，320 were recovered and 320 were effective. The recovery rate and effective rate were 96.97％ and 100％ respectively. The ceiling effect of new dimension scale was 13.44％，the split-half reliability was 0.821，and the overall Cronbach ’s α was 0.852. Exploratory factor analysis showed that the new dimension scale was loaded with physiological ，cognitive and psychological factors ，and the cumulative contribution rate was 69.35％. The correlation coefficient between the new dimension and the dimension of MMSE scale were 0.19-0.61，showing a moderate or medium to strong correlation （P＜0.01）. Compared with EQ- 5D-5L，after adding each dimension ，the interpretation ability of the regression model was improved by 5.00％-17.50％. CONCLUSIONS The new dimension scale has high feasibility ，good reliability and validity ，significantly reduces the ceiling effect of EQ- 5D-5L，has higher sensitivity to the evaluation of people ’s quality of life，and can better evaluate the quality of life of rural population. It is suggested that it can be applied for quality of life evaluation，intervention effect analysis and related economic evaluation.

Application of adjusted limited dependent variable mixed model in the mapping of pharmacoeconomic health utility scale / 中国药房

OBJ ECTIVE To introduce adjusted limited dependent variable mixed model （ALDVMM）and study its application in mapping research ，so as to provide reference for pharmacoeconomic evaluation that needs to obtain health utility value through mapping. METHODS Using the method of literature research ，ALDVMM was introduced from the aspects of development background，model principle ，model determination and test ，model advantages and the current application of the model in empirical research. RESULTS & CONCLUSIONS ALDVMM is a mixed model developed by foreign scholars for the truncation and multimodality phenomenon of EuroQoL group ’s 5D（EQ-5D）at the health utility value 1. Compared with the traditional model，ALDVMM is feasible and has more advantages ，and can more effectively and flexibly capture the actual distribution of EQ-5D and deal with the boundary value problem ，which is helpful to obtain the health utility value more accurately and efficiently and carry out high-quality pharmacoeconomic evaluation.

Calidad de vida relacionada con la salud y el funcionamiento familiar en pacientes amputados / Quality of life related with the health and family operation in amputated patients

Objetivo. Evaluar la calidad de vida relacionada con la salud (CVRS) en pacientes con amputación, independientemente de la causa; así mismo, evaluar las relaciones familiares a partir de sus percepciones. Metodología. Se realizó un estudio descriptivo, transversal, en pacientes amputados que acudieron para tratamiento rehabilitador al área de salud del Policlínico Docente Universitario del Cerro (La Habana, Cuba). El grupo de estudio estuvo conformado por 26 pacientes, observados entre marzo de 2017 y enero de 2020, quienes cumplieron los criterios de inclusión. Resultados. La mayoría de los amputados fueron hombres entre 55 y 65 años, con una edad media de 57 años. Predominaron los pacientes que tenían condiciones materiales de vida deficientes, con el 80,7 % entre regular y mala, según las cinco dimensiones del test EuroQol5D distribuidas por frecuencia. Predominaron los pacientes que estaban en el nivel 2 con problemas ocasionales o moderados. El mayor porcentaje de los pacientes con problemas en la esfera psicológica pertenecían a familias disfuncionales; así mismo, aquellos pacientes con un nivel medio de movilidad y desarrollo de algunas actividades cotidianas pertenecían a familias funcionales o moderadamente funcionales. Conclusiones. Se hallaron de pocos a moderados problemas en las cinco dimensiones de la calidad de vida evaluadas. El funcionamiento familiar ciertamente contribuyó a la percepción del estado de salud, el cual exhibió puntajes de 50 y más en la mayoría de los casos, con un mejoramiento de la calidad de vida de estos pacientes

Objective. To evaluate the health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in patients with amputation, regardless of the cause; likewise, to evaluate family relationships based on their perceptions. Methodology. A descriptive, cross-sectional study was carried out in amputee patients who came for rehabilitation treatment to the health area of the Policlínico Docente Universitario del Cerro (Havana, Cuba). The study group consisted of 26 patients, observed between March 2017 and January 2020, who met the inclusion criteria. Results. Most of the amputees were men between 55 and 65 years of age, with a mean age of 57 years. Patients with poor material living conditions predominated, with 80.7 % between fair and poor, according to the five dimensions of the EuroQol-5D test distributed by frequency. Patients in level 2 with occasional or moderate problems predominated. The highest percentage of patients with problems in the psychological sphere belonged to dysfunctional families; likewise, those patients with an average level of mobility and development of some daily activities belonged to functional or moderately functional families. Conclusions. Few to moderate problems were found in the five dimensions of quality of life assessed. Family functioning certainly contributed to the perception of health status, which exhibited scores of 50 and above in most cases, with an improvement in the quality of life of these patients.

Prevalence of Frailty in Patients with Osteoporotic Vertebral Compression Fracture and Its Association with Numbers of Fractures

PURPOSE: To assess the association between frailty and osteoporotic vertebral compression fracture (OVCF) and to evaluate the relationship between numbers of OVCFs and frailty. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We enrolled 760 subjects, including 59 patients (with OVCF) and 701 controls (without OVCF). Successful matching provided 56 patient-control pairs. We analyzed principal clinical and demographic information, which included sex, age, height, weight, body mass index (BMI), variable frailty phenotypes, and Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) and EuroQol 5-dimension questionnaire (EQ-5D) scores. The association between frailty and OVCF was ascertained. In addition, the degrees of disability and quality of life attributable to frailty were determined. RESULTS: The prevalence of frailty was significantly higher in the OVCF group than in the control group (p < 0.001). Most of the frailty phenotypes, such as exhaustion, physical inactivity, slowness, and handgrip strength, were also significantly observed in the OVCF group. Within the OVCF group, the participants with frailty had significantly higher disability and lower quality of life than those in a robust state (p < 0.001 for ODI and EQ-5D). In addition, the multivariate logistic regression analysis demonstrated that the patients with low BMI [odds ratio (OR)=0.704; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.543–0.913] and ≥3 fractures (OR=9.213; 95% CI, 1.529–55.501) within the OVCF group were associated with higher odds of frailty. CONCLUSION: The present study showed significant relationships between frailty and OVCF, severity of symptoms, and disability induced by OVCF. Furthermore, frailty could be a causal and/or resulting factor of OVCFs.

Establishing validity of EQ-5D-3L (Tagalog) to measure health-related quality of life states among adult Filipinos (20-50 years old)

@#<p style="text-align: justify;"><b>OBJECTIVE: </b>To establish the validity of EQ-5D-3L in Tagalog language in assessing health-related quality of life states among adult Filipinos 20-50 years old.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>METHODS:</b> A face-to-face cross-sectional community survey of apparently healthy adult Filipinos (20-50 years old) in Metro Manila and in 4 nearby provinces (Bulacan, Batangas, Quezon, Rizal) was conducted. Trained interviewers administered the Tagalog language versions of EuroQoL 5-Dimension 3 Levels (EQ-5D-3L), Short-Form 2 (SF-26V2®), and a socio-economic questionnaire. All questionnaires were pre-tested for cultural appropriateness. Concurrent validity (against the SF-36v2R®) and known group validity of the EQ-5D-3L were evaluated.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>RESULTS:</b> Complete data from 3,056 participants were analyzed. Almost half of the participants reported perfect health on EQ-5D-3L and had higher scores on all SF-36v2® domains compared to those who reported some problems on EQ-5D-3L. Compared to participants who reported some problems on EQ-5D-3L mobility (or anxiety/depression), participants who reported no problem on EQ-5D-3L mobility (or anxiety/depression) reported lower SF-36v2® Physical Functioning (or Mental Health) scores (differences of 7.1 and 10 points, respectively) that were minimally important (i.e. exceeds 5 points). Participants with poorer self-reported health had considerably lower EQ-5D index scores (p < 0.05) irrespective of their socio-demographic characteristics.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><b>CONCLUSION:</b> EQ-5D-3L (Tagalog) demonstrated construct and known groups validity among adult Filipinos (20-50 years old).</p>

Overview of the Mapping Method and Relevant Models in Health Utility Values Measurement / 中国药房

OBJECTIVE:To provide methodological reference for converting non-utility scale measurement results into health utility values. METHODS:Referring to domestic and foreign literatures,mapping methods and relevant models in health utility measurement were summarized. The effect of each model on probability mapping was introduced by taking the Medical outcomes study 12-item short form health survey measurement results converting into the EuroQol group's 5-domain utility values as exam-ple.RESULTS:The mapping methods can be adopted to obtain the health utility values by establishing the mapping relationship be-tween non-utility scale and utility scale. The common models included ordinary least square(OLS)model,censored least absolute deviations(CLAD)model,Tobit model,multinomial Logistic regression(MNL)model,Bayesian networks(BN)model,etc. OLS model was relatively simple with a good predictive validity,but it would be limited by the ceiling effect;Tobit model was not limit-ed by the ceiling or floor effect,when the error term satisfied the variance homogeneity and normality,prediction result of Tobit model was better than OLS model;CLAD model can be used for the situation of Tobit model unsuitable for non-variance homoge-neity of the error term;MNL model firstly determined a health state by regression analysis and then determined its utility value;the prediction validity of BN model was good and it didn't involved many assumptions and restrictions condition in econometrics, but the construction of BN model was greatly influenced by domain experts. Main methods for the calculation of health utility value with MNL or BN model were Monte Carlo simulation method,expected-utility method,most-likely probability methed,etc. We can carry out the model performance evaluation by using the R2,the adjusted R2,the mean error,the mean squared error and the mean absolute error,and then select the optimal model to calculate health utility values. CONCLUSIONS:Due to the advantages and disadvantages of each mapping model,it is necessary to select different mapping models based on the actual conditions.

Overview of the Mapping Method and Relevant Models in Health Utility Values Measurement / 中国药房

OBJECTIVE:To provide methodological reference for converting non-utility scale measurement results into health utility values. METHODS:Referring to domestic and foreign literatures,mapping methods and relevant models in health utility measurement were summarized. The effect of each model on probability mapping was introduced by taking the Medical outcomes study 12-item short form health survey measurement results converting into the EuroQol group's 5-domain utility values as exam-ple.RESULTS:The mapping methods can be adopted to obtain the health utility values by establishing the mapping relationship be-tween non-utility scale and utility scale. The common models included ordinary least square(OLS)model,censored least absolute deviations(CLAD)model,Tobit model,multinomial Logistic regression(MNL)model,Bayesian networks(BN)model,etc. OLS model was relatively simple with a good predictive validity,but it would be limited by the ceiling effect;Tobit model was not limit-ed by the ceiling or floor effect,when the error term satisfied the variance homogeneity and normality,prediction result of Tobit model was better than OLS model;CLAD model can be used for the situation of Tobit model unsuitable for non-variance homoge-neity of the error term;MNL model firstly determined a health state by regression analysis and then determined its utility value;the prediction validity of BN model was good and it didn't involved many assumptions and restrictions condition in econometrics, but the construction of BN model was greatly influenced by domain experts. Main methods for the calculation of health utility value with MNL or BN model were Monte Carlo simulation method,expected-utility method,most-likely probability methed,etc. We can carry out the model performance evaluation by using the R2,the adjusted R2,the mean error,the mean squared error and the mean absolute error,and then select the optimal model to calculate health utility values. CONCLUSIONS:Due to the advantages and disadvantages of each mapping model,it is necessary to select different mapping models based on the actual conditions.

Reliability and validity of EQ-5D-3L and FACT in Beijing's patients with cancer and precancerosis / 肿瘤

Objective: Based on the Cancer Screening Program in urban districts in Beijing from 2013 to 2014, target populations included pulmonary, mammary, esophageal, colorectal, hepatic and gastric cancers and precancerosis patients. The EQ-5D-3L and Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy (FACT) questionnaires were used to measure the patients' quality of life and the reliability and validity of EQ-5D-3L and FACT were analyzed. Methods: The EQ-5D-3L and FACT questionnaires were used to measure 1 001 patients with cancer and precancerosis. The Cronbach's α coefficient was calculated to test the consistent reliability of EQ-5D-3L and FACT. The factor analysis was used to measure the construct validity of FACT and the FACT as standard to test the convergent validity of EQ-5D-3L. Results: Cronbach's α coefficients of EQ-5D-3L for pulmonary, breast, esophageal, colorectal, hepatic and gastric cancers were 0.846, 0.805, 0.877, 0.862, 0.793 and 0.844, respectively; the Cronbach's α coefficients of FACT were 0.935, 0.916, 0.950, 0.952, 0.915 and 0.953, respectively. The cumulative explained variances of FACT were 64.28%, 65.15%, 71.43%, 67.21%, 64.76% and 70.56%, respectively. Compared with FACT, the convergent validities of EQ-5D-3L were 0.592, 0.503, 0.715, 0.672, 0.561 and 0.444, respectively. The convergent validities of EQ-Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) were 0.553, 0.606, 0.576, 0.579, 0.361 and 0.364, respectively. Conclusion: EQ-5D-3L and FACT questionnaires for pulmonary, breast, esophageal, colorectal, hepatic and gastric cancers and the precancerosis patients are verified to have good reliabilities, and the FACT questionnaires of six types of cancers are being verified to have good construct validities. The EQ-5D-3L questionnaires for esophageal, colorectal, pulmonary, hepatic and breast cancers are being verified to have good convergent validities; but for the gastric cancer and precancerosis, there are limited validities.

The Measurement Of Quality Of Life Among Population Within The Crowd: A Case Study Among Malaysian Pilgrims In Makkah

Hajj and ‘Umrah pilgrimage are a huge congregation performed by Muslims in Makkah, Saudi Arabia. The pilgrimage causes overcrowding and congestion that can lead to a high risk of health problems, especially when pilgrims have health problems. The purpose of this study is to assess the reliability of EQ-5D as a measuring tool to capture the health status of the pilgrims. Data collection was done during Ramadhan’s ‘Umrah in 2014. In this cross-sectional study, a total of 300 self-administered questionnaires attached with the EQ-5D-5L questions were distributed to Malaysian ‘Umrah pilgrims in Makkah and willing to participate in the study. The outcomes from the questionnaires and EQ-5D-5L were systematically analysed by using the SPSS software. The response rate was 64%, involved female (53%) and male (47%) respondents with the mean age of 55 years old. Hypertension (21.5%) and diabetes (16.2%) were the commonest underlying health problems suffered by the respondents in this study. Based on the EQ-5D outcomes, 53.3% of the respondents had no problem in their movement. However, the mean of EQ-VAS (visual analogue scale) presented 83 out of 100 scaling point, which means they might have problems in their health status. In addition, this study revealed, respondents with underlying illnesses had difficulty in some dimensions in EQ-5D. Hypertension was identified as the commonest underlying disease amongst the pilgrims. A contradicted outcome from the objective and subjective measuring scales of EQ-5D and EQ-VAS respectively; presented its sensitivity of EuroQol as a measuring tool for the quality of life among pilgrims living within such congestion

Relationships among Disability, Quality of Life, and Physical Fitness in Lumbar Spinal Stenosis: An Investigation of Elderly Korean Women

STUDY DESIGN: A cross-sectional, case-control study. PURPOSE: To investigate associations between physical fitness measures and disabilities related to back pain and quality of life (QOL) by the presence of symptomatic lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS) in elderly Korean women. OVERVIEW OF LITERATURE: LSS leads to decreased functioning and reduced QOL. However, correlations among physical fitness, disability, and QOL have not been investigated in elderly women with LSS. METHODS: Participants included women aged 65 years and older (n=192), divided into a study group (n=38) and a control group (n=154) based on the presence/absence of LSS. All participants underwent physical function and fitness tests. Oswestry disability index (ODI) scores and EuroQol five-dimensional questionnaire (EQ-5D-5L) scores were used to assess disability and health-related QOL. RESULTS: The results for the handgrip strength, sit-and-reach, functional reach, and timed up and go (TUG) tests were significantly higher in the control group than the LSS group. ODI scores were significantly higher and EQ-5D-5L scores significantly lower in the LSS group. TUG and functional reach test scores were significantly correlated with ODI scores, and handgrip strength was strongly interrelated with ODI and EQ-5D-5L scores in the LSS group. No other physical fitness measures showed statistically significant relationships with ODI or EQ-5D-5L scores. CONCLUSIONS: In elderly Korean women with LSS, back pain-related disability and QOL are significantly associated with some physical fitness parameters such as handgrip strength. Handgrip strength reflects general muscle strength, which is significantly interrelated with the level of disability and QOL. Our results suggest that enhancing generalized muscle strength helps to reduce disability due to back pain and improve QOL in patients with LSS.

An Analysis on the Determinants and Equity of the Postpartum Care Service Utilization / 보건행정학회지

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to analyze effects of postpartum care services to women after birth, identify the factors affecting their use, and examine the extent of income-related inequality in the postpartum care services utilization and expenditures using Korean Health Panel data between 2010 and 2013. METHODS: The panel data of the year 2010–2013 of the 247 women after birth were used. First, EuroQoL-5D was used to evaluate the effects of postpartum care service to women's quality of life. Second, multinominal logistic regression analysis was used to identify determinants of the use of the postpartum care services. Finally, concentration index and HIwv (horizontal equity) index were used to find that the concentration index for the inequality in the use of postpartum care services showed negative sign, which implied pro-rich. RESULTS: The estimation results showed that utilization of the postpartum services has a positive effect on women after birth. Also age, area of residence, and number of household members turn out to be the factors of using postpartum services. And there are inequality in the use of postpartum care services whose HIwv index showed positive sign, which implied pro-rich. CONCLUSION: Therefore, the government's policy of the postpartum care service is necessary to be expanded and diversified considering the personal characteristics and equity of the women after birth.

Quality of Life and Visual Efficiency: fifth Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey

PURPOSE: To analyze the association of visual efficiency and quality of life using data from the fifth Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES V). METHODS: The present study included 5,244 glaucoma or glaucoma suspect subjects who completed a visual acuity test, visual field test and health-related questionnaire from the KNHANES V. Visual efficiency was calculated using best corrected visual acuity and visual field test. Quality of life was assessed with EuroQoL 5D (EQ-5D). Visual efficiency was compared with best corrected vision of the better eye to evaluate the relationship with quality of life. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and partial correlations analysis were used to analyze the associations between factors. RESULTS: Both visual efficiency and best corrected visual acuity of the better eye were significantly different with all EQ-5D parameters (p < 0.005). After controlling for age, gender, income, education, spouse and house ownership, visual efficiency showed a positive correlation coefficient of +0.040 (p = 0.006) with the quality of life and the best corrected visual acuity of the better eye showed negative correlation coefficient of -0.044 (p = 0.002) with the quality of life. CONCLUSIONS: Visual efficiency was associated with the quality of life. Not only visual acuity but also visual efficiency would be a valuable parameter when considering the quality of life. Further studies are needed to evaluate non-glaucomatous populations.

The relationship of quality of health-related life with the status of oral health in adults / 대한구강보건학회지

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to use the components of the European Quality of Life-5 dimension (EQ-5D) scale to investigate the oral health status and health-related quality of life of adults in order to collect basic data on how to improve quality of life. METHODS: This study was conducted in 2014. Data from the 6th Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (sixth term; 2 years) were analyzed by utilizing the raw information from the disease management headquarters. The 2,805 subjects were 19 to 59-year-old adults who were not missing values of the main missing value of oral health status in variables and the EQ-5D. Statistical analysis was performed by frequency analysis and chi-squared (χ2) and t-tests. Analysis of variance was performed using multiple regression analysis. The significance level was determined to be 0.05. RESULTS: Dental pain and mobility (P<0.005), pain and discomfort (P<0.005), chewing problems and speaking discomfort, anxiety and depression (P<0.05), subjective oral health awareness, mobility (P<0.001), self-care (P<0.05), usual activities (P<0.05), pain and discomfort (P<0.005) were significantly related. In the effect on the components of the EQ-5D by logistic regression analysis, gender, age, education level, household income, chewing problems, and periodontal disease prevalence were significant variables in the quality of health-related life. CONCLUSIONS: The results showed that oral health status significantly influenced the quality of life in adults. Through the recognition of the impact of oral health on health-related quality of life, we expect that the data from this study will help promote the development of oral health and oral health education programs for the maintenance and promotion of adult health.

Correlation between Oral Health Condition and Life Quality Related to General Health Using EuroQol-5 Dimension / 치위생과학회지

With change in the pattern of disease occurrence and increase in the interest in health, efforts to assess the health status on patients covering their subjective awareness at the same time as clinical and objective evaluation on health are continued. To measure health-related quality of life can be one of these efforts. This study was performed to evaluate the relevance of the quality of overall health-related-life and oral health condition. Also the second year (2014) materials in the 6th the National Health and Nutrition Survey were applied to this study. The factors affecting general health related quality of life measured by EuroQol-5 dimension (EQ-5D) have been confirmed by gender, age, education level, income level, private health insurance, perceived health status, toothache experience during the last 1 year, remaining tooth number. As oral health plays an important role in determining the overall health conditions, objective oral health state influences the whole body health. Hence, it can be regarded that oral health is ultimately related to the general health-related quality of life.

Assessing the health-related quality of life of the elderly in rural communities using the EuroQOL-5 dimensions / 中华物理医学与康复杂志

Objective To assess the quality of life (QoL) of rural elderly persons using the health-related dimensions of the EuroQol-5 (EQ-5D) scale to analyze the scale's reliability and validity.Methods A total of 2575 elderly residents of Tongchun rural community in Kaihua county,Zhejiang Province,were surveyed using the instrument EQ-5D,and the visual analogue scale of EQ.They included 1027 with and 1548 without chronic disease.Results The mean total EQ-5D score was 6.49 ± 1.94 for the chronic disease group and 5.15 ± 0.44 for the healthy group.The corresponding average visual analogue scale (VAS) scores were 78.15 ± 17.26 and 91.47 ± 4.37,showing significant differences.About 75％ of the elderly respondents reported no difficulties in their living.There was strong correlation between the EQ-VAS scores and the scores on all the EQ-5D scale dimensions.Conclusion The health-related quality of life reported by the rural elderly using this scale seems quite good.The EQ-5D scale,with the EQ-VAS scale as a part of it,is one useful and effective tool for evaluating the health-related quality of life of the elderly in rural areas.

Comparison of the Effects of a Brand-name Drug and Its Generic Drug on the Quality of Life of Alzheimer's Disease Patients

OBJECTIVE: The pharmacological effects of generic (GE) donepezil are the same as Aricept, its brand-name counterpart. However, little is known as to whether these two drugs provide the same quality of life (QOL). The study subjects were patients with Alzheimer's disease who were taking donepezil hydrochloride tablets, and were selected by visiting either the local pharmacies or the patients' homes. We chose the brand-name drug Aricept and its GE form donepezil to investigate, from a long-term caregiver's perspective, the influence of both drugs on the patients' QOL. METHODS: An EuroQol-5 Dimension (EQ-5D) was used to assess the QOL of patients with Alzheimer's disease, before and after various Aricept and/or donepezil regimens. Patients were divided into four groups: first time users of Aricept (n=43), first time users of GE donepezil (n=45), users refilling previous prescriptions of Aricept (n=51), and users switching from Aricept to GE donepezil (n=51). RESULTS: The average change in the EQ-5D utility indices rose significantly in the patients starting a new regimen of Aricept and its GE drug. The patients continuing an existing regimen of Aricept showed no significant differences, even after Aricept was switched to a GE drug. CONCLUSION: The QOL of patients starting a new regimen of Aricept and its GE drug improved. The QOL was maintained upon switching to the GE drug form.