Review of the current status of the quality of life in stroke survivors

Abstract

The objective of this article was to know the findings about the quality of life (QL) in surviving patients through the review of empirical studies published in the period from 2012 to 2017 in the databases of Sciencedirect and Proquest. A documentary descriptive study was conducted, in which the following words were used as search descriptors: quality of life, ictus, and ACV were used for the research. 1679 articles were initially identified, 44 of those were selected based on their fulfillment of the inclusion criteria. The articles were analyzed according to the methodological design, the characteristics of the participants, the measurement instruments, the main results obtained and the limitations reported. A total of 44 studies were found, o 97% were quantitative, with the observational cross-sectional design with the most prevalent relational scope. The main issue addressed in the studies was the factors associated with CV; being functionality, neurological status and depression, the most reported predictive variables. It is expected that in the future, the research about the topic will be made through mixed investigation or with observational longitudinal designs, that include participants younger than 18; should perform assessments with specific scales, and should delve into the effect of cognitive and psychological variables, and care process in the life quality.