Socio-demographic and clinical predictors of health-related quality of life in patients after myocardial infarction

Abstract

Introduction: Acute coronary syndrome is associated with a reduction in the patients’ own perception of their quality of life (QoL). QoL is an important measure of the effectiveness of treatment; however, some of the predictors may be associated with a lower QoL assessment. The evaluation of QoL of patients after myocardial infarctions takes into consideration the socio-demographic and clinical predictors which can affect the level of health-related QoL Objective: The aim of this study is to determine which socio-demographic and clinical factors have a positive or negative impact on QoL. Material and methods: The study included 100 patients of the American Heart of Poland Clinic in Bielsko-Biała who had undergone ST-myocardial infarction. For the purpose of the study, the following instruments were used: demographic data sheet, the Nottingham Health Profile questionnaire, and items regarding clinical variables: gender, age, education, marital status, occupational activity, blood pressure and heart rate, BMI, physical activity. Results: Comparative analysis of QoL, depending on the selected variables, revealed statistically significant differences among respondents with reference to age. People above the age of 85 showed the lowest rating of QoL in domains: Energy (NHP=100), Pain (80.3), and Mobility restriction (78.7). People with primary and vocational education rated their QoL worse than those with secondary and high education. The lowest QoL was typical of the single and widowers, obese and physical inactive people.