Impact of asthma on women and men: Comparison with the general population using the EQ-5D-5L questionnaire

Abstract

BackgroundThe aim was to evaluate the impact of asthma on patients’ Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) by comparing asthmatic women and men with reference norms, to examine the factors which contributed to an impaired HRQoL, and to identify groups at higher risk.MethodsCross-sectional evaluation of 222 primary care patients with persistent asthma (18–40 years old). HRQoL impact was estimated with the EuroQol-5 Dimensions (EQ-5D), which allows calculating Quality-Adjusted Life-Years (QALYs) by applying society preferences. Participants self-completed the EQ-5D questionnaire online. Telephonic interviews collected information on medication and adherence, and administered the Asthma Control Questionnaire. Severity markers included asthma-related comorbidity, previous oral corticosteroids course prescription, and inhaled corticosteroids daily dose. After bivariate analyses, multiple linear regression models were constructed to examine the relations between HRQoL asthma impact and socio-demographic and clinical variables, using as dependent variable the deviation from general population-based EQ-5D reference norms.ResultsDeviation from the EQ-5D index norms was moderate in most age/gender groups (-0.1, which corresponds to 0.6 standard deviations), while it was large in women aged 18–24 years (-0.18, corresponding to 1.1 standard deviations). In regression models, a poor asthma control was the only factor independently associated to HRQoL impact in both women and men: β -0.18 (p<0.001) and -0.15 (p = 0.01) respectively. Translating these β coefficients to QALYs, they are interpretable as 66 fewer days of full health per year in women with uncontrolled asthma and 55 for men, compared with those with controlled asthma.ConclusionPersistent asthma has a moderately negative HRQoL impact on patients of both genders, and the youngest women have been identified as a high risk group which merits further research. We identified asthma control as the major contributor to impaired HRQoL in patients, regardless of their gender, suggesting that asthma HRQoL impact could be alleviated by achieving a good control of symptoms.

Comparison of the Association between Circulating Vitamin D₃ Levels and Clinical Outcomes in Patients with Asthma and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: A Prospective Observational Study

“…Although there is no previous evidence indicating the relationship between ACQ and vitamin D levels, a positive correlation between vitamin D levels and ACT was reported in asthmatic adults and children with moderate to severe asthma. 16,17) We found that the ACT and ACQ scores correlated with the EQ-5D index value, VAS, and PCS, in agreement with previous studies. 18,19) The difference in the association between ACT and ACQ may help explain the role of vitamin D in disease control and HR-QOL in patients with asthma.…”

Health Related Quality of Life and its Associated Factors Among Adults Living with Asthma Attending at Selected Public Hospitals in North-Western, Ethiopia: A Multi-Centered Cross- Sectional Study

“…According to the result of this study patients those who uses health insurance were correlated signi cantly with HRQoL. This positive association between health insurance and HRQoL were supported by other studies [12,24,25,[39][40][41][42][43][44]. The possible explanation for this positive association might be mainly to high levels of adherence, reduce out pocket cost for drug and use of treatment as per guidelines increased in health insured participants.…”

Calidad de vida en personas con depresión y comorbilidad física desde una perspectiva de género

“…Encontramos estudios en los que se analizó la CVRS en relación con el buen manejo de la patología crónica en los que desapareció esa diferencia asociada con el género, siendo dependiente de un mejor control en la enfermedad. El estudio realizado por Hernández identificó la gravedad y el control de síntomas del asma como el principal contribuyente a la alteración de la CVRS, independientemente de su sexo, sugiere que el impacto del asma en la CVRS podría aliviarse logrando un buen control de los síntomas 22 . Otros estudios realizados con pacientes con EPOC o DM, también atribuyeron una peor calidad de vida cuando la gravedad de la patología es mayor y el control de los síntomas peor 23 , 24 .…”