A Study of Factors Influencing Quality of Life among Community Dwelling Elderly in Urban Community / 생물치료정신의학

ABSTRACT

Objectives@#：We examined the factors influencing quality of life among community dwelling elderly in Busan city. @*Methods@#：The subjects of this research were 160 community-dwelling elderly people without dementia and major depressive disorder. Korean version of World Health Organization Quality of Life assessment instrument-Abbreviated form (WHOQOL-BREF), Korean version of Short Geriatric Depression Scale (SGDS-K) and Korean version of MiniMental State Examination (K-MMSE) were administered for each subject. Low quality of life was defined as below 60 points of WHOQOL-BREF. @*Results@#：The high quality of life group showed higher score of MMSE, lower score of GDS-K, higher educational level and married status. About a third of the subjects complained about low quality of life. In the low quality of life group, there were significant associations between quality of life and SGDS-K (p<0.001), but there was no association with education (p=0.708), marital status (p=0.410), and K-MMSE (p=0.683). @*Conclusion@#：Depressive disorders including minor depressive disorder and subsyndromal depression, might play a role in the quality of life rather than cognitive impairments in community-dwelling elderly people. Therefore, the treatments for the depressive mood should be considered in dealing with low quality of life.