[The relations between quality of life, morbidity of chronic non-infectious diseases and use of medications in stroke patients]. / Sviaz' kachestva zhizni perenesshikh tserebral'nyi insul't bol'nykh, zabolevaemosti khronicheskimi neinfektsionnymi bolezniami i upotrebleniia lekarstvennykh sredstv.

Objective. To determine relations between quality of life, morbidity of chronic non-infectious diseases and use of pharmaceuticals by stroke patients. Material and methods. The case group consisted of 508 Kaunas citizens, aged 25-84 years, who survived the stroke. The control group consisted of randomly chosen 508 sex- and age-matched Kaunas citizens without stroke. SF-12 questionnaire on the quality of life was used. Quality of life was analysed in physical and mental health domains taking into consideration morbidity of chronic non-infectious diseases and use of pharmaceuticals. The percentage of those who had more than one chronic non-infectious disease was 38.6 in the case group and 17.2 in the control group (p<0.001). With respect to the use of antihypertensive (66.5% in the case group and 67.3% in the control group), antithrombotic (21.5% and 24.6%) and antidepressant (100% and 100%) medication, case and control groups were similar. Results and conclusion. Compared to people without arterial hypertension, scores in physical health domain were lower in people with arterial hypertension (p=0.018) and the control group (p=0,0005). In the main group, people without atrial fibrillation scored lower (p=0.0005) in physical health domain compared to those with atrial fibrillation. Scores in mental health domain were lower in the control group (p=0.048). Compared to people with diabetes mellitus (DM), those with DM scored lower in the case group (p=0.0005). The use of antihypertensive or antithrombotic medication before stroke did not predict quality of life in patients with chronic non-infectious diseases. Meanwhile, in the control group the use of antithrombotic medication improved (p<0.05) the quality of life in physical health domain.

[Correlation between quality of life and social/demographic factors in patients with stroke].

The population of Kaunas was studied in 2004-2006. The main group included 508 patients with first-ever stroke and the control group included 508 age- and sex-matched people randomly selected from the population. The SF-12 quality of life questionnaire in the domains of physical and mental health was used. The significant inverse correlation (p < 0.05) between the physical health and the age was found both in patients (r = -0.34) and controls (r = -0.64). The scores of physical health were higher in men (p < 0.001) as compared to women only in the control group. The physical health of Livonian patients was better (p < 0.008) than that of patients of other ethnic groups. People living alone scored their physical health lower as in the control (p < 0.01) as well in main (p < 0.008) groups. The physical health of working people was better (p < 0.005) in both groups. In both groups, subjects with higher education and those not living alone reported themselves in better health regardless of sex compared to people with lower education and/or those living alone and/or unemployed.