Donkor Eric S, Owolabi Mayowa O, Bampoh Patrick O, Amoo Philip K, Aspelund Thor, Gudnason Vilmundur
College of Health Sciences, University of Ghana, Accra, Ghana ; Centre for Public Health Sciences, University of Iceland, Reykjavík, Iceland.
Department of Medicine, University of Ibadan and University College Hospital, Ibadan, Nigeria.
Clin Interv Aging. 2014 Oct 8;9:1701-8. doi: 10.2147/CIA.S62371. eCollection 2014.
Stroke is a leading cause of mortality with a major effect on health-related quality of life (HRQoL). There are no previous studies exploring HRQoL among stroke survivors in Ghana, despite the increasing public health significance of the disease in this country. Here we describe the profile of and factors associated with HRQoL among stroke survivors in Ghana.
This was a cross-sectional study involving 156 stroke survivors and 156 age- and sex-matched, apparently healthy controls. A robust HRQoL questionnaire involving seven domains was used to collect data from the study participants. Clinical epidemiology data were also collected from stroke survivors on parameters such as stroke severity and risk factors. Statistical analyses were performed on the interrelationships among the study variables.
The mean ages of the stroke survivors and healthy controls were 58.0 (standard deviation, 11.4) and 57.6 (standard deviation, 12.0) years, respectively. Fifty-three percent (86) of the stroke survivors had mild stroke and 35.3% (55) had moderate stroke, whereas 12.2% (19) had severe stroke. Ischemic infarction was the prevalent stroke subtype (78.1%). Hypertension was the most common risk factor (89%) among the stroke survivors, followed by diabetes (29%). HRQoL scores ranged from 57.7% (cognitive domain) to 80.0% (spirit domain) for stroke survivors, whereas HRQoL scores of the control group ranged from 65.6% (cognitive domain) to 85.2% (soul domain). For each HRQoL domain, significantly higher scores were observed for the control group compared with the stroke survivors, at P<0.05. Determinants of HRQoL of stroke survivors in multivariate analysis included age, stroke severity, poststroke duration, stroke recurrence, frequency of laughter, and negative emotions.
The most affected HRQoL domains are of the physical, psychoemotional, and cognitive domains. Rehabilitation of stroke patients in this region should include interventions targeted at these domains and modifying the statistical determinants of HRQoL where possible.
中风是导致死亡的主要原因，对健康相关生活质量（HRQoL）有重大影响。尽管中风在加纳的公共卫生重要性日益增加，但此前尚无研究探讨加纳中风幸存者的HRQoL。在此，我们描述了加纳中风幸存者的概况以及与HRQoL相关的因素。
这是一项横断面研究，涉及156名中风幸存者以及156名年龄和性别匹配的、表面健康的对照者。使用一份包含七个领域的强大HRQoL问卷从研究参与者中收集数据。还从中风幸存者那里收集了关于中风严重程度和风险因素等参数的临床流行病学数据。对研究变量之间的相互关系进行了统计分析。
中风幸存者和健康对照者的平均年龄分别为58.0岁（标准差11.4）和57.6岁（标准差12.0）。53%（86名）的中风幸存者为轻度中风，35.3%（55名）为中度中风，而12.2%（19名）为重度中风。缺血性梗死是最常见的中风亚型（78.1%）。高血压是中风幸存者中最常见的风险因素（89%），其次是糖尿病（29%）。中风幸存者的HRQoL得分范围为57.7%（认知领域）至80.0%（精神领域），而对照组的HRQoL得分范围为65.6%（认知领域）至85.2%（心灵领域）。对于每个HRQoL领域，与中风幸存者相比，对照组的得分显著更高，P<0.05。多变量分析中中风幸存者HRQoL的决定因素包括年龄、中风严重程度、中风后持续时间、中风复发、笑的频率和负面情绪。
受影响最大的HRQoL领域是身体、心理情绪和认知领域。该地区中风患者的康复应包括针对这些领域的干预措施，并尽可能改变HRQoL的统计决定因素。
