Assessment of health-related quality of life in patients with myasthenia gravis in Belgrade (Serbia)

Abstract

The aim of this study was to assess factors that might influence the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in patients with myasthenia gravis (MG). A cross-sectional study was performed including 230 consecutive patients with MG. Severity of the disease was estimated according to the MGFA classification and QMG score. HRQoL was assessed by the SF-36 questionnaire. Depressive and anxiety symptoms were assessed using the Hamilton rating scales for depression and anxiety, respectively. Social support was measured by the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS), and acceptance of the disease by the Acceptance of Illness Scale. The significant demographic predictors of worse HRQoL in MG patients were older age (p = 0.025) and lower education (p = 0.012). Among clinical features, significant independent contributing factors of worse HRQoL were more severe form of the disease according to MGFA (p = 0.001) and higher QMG score (p = 0.001). Finally, psychosocial predictors of worse quality of life were lower MSPSS score (p = 0.001), poor acceptance of the disease (p = 0.001), as well as higher levels of anxiety and depression (p = 0.001). Our study revealed that the HRQoL in patients with MG is similarly reduced in its psychological and physical aspects. These results may have a practical implication pointing out that different aspects of psychosocial support should be added to the regular therapeutic protocols.

Traducción y validación de la escala Individualized Neuromuscular Quality of Life para la población española: evaluación de la calidad de vida para personas afectas de enfermedades neuromusculares

“…Índice de concordancia interobservador (ICC) e intervalo de confianza al 95% (IC 95%) de las subdimensiones y puntuación total de la escala. de la escala, así como en las validaciones en otras poblaciones de Italia, Serbia y Estados Unidos [7][8][9]. Es importante destacar que la puntuación total de la calidad de vida relacionada con la salud, que valora la INQoL, tiene un índice de fiabilidad excelente en el presente estudio.…”

“…Esta circunstancia se podría explicar por el hecho de que se está valorando un concepto más relacionado con aspectos emocionales que pueden sufrir modificaciones a lo largo del tiempo. En la validación de la escala en la población Serbia y en la versión italiana se obtienen los mismos resultados con un ICC similar [7,8].…”

Myasthenia gravis and risks for comorbidity

“…Depression and anxiety occur in a proportion of MG patients, combined with a reduced health-related quality of life [50,51]. Drug treatment of depression, anxiety and sleep disturbances was 1.2-1.5 as common in an unselected national MG population compared with matched non-MG controls [17].…”

Clinical features and impact of myasthenia gravis disease in Australian patients

“…The effect of MG on quality of life (QOL) has been explored using generic measures like short form health surveys (SF-36) as well as MG-specific scores [7][8][9][10]. QOL with MG has been found to correlate with disease severity as measured by the Myasthenia Gravis Foundation of America score, and has been found to be useful in clinical trials [11][12][13].…”