Department of Health Sciences, University of York, York, United Kingdom.
Social Policy Research Unit, University of York, York, United Kingdom.
PLoS One. 2019 Jan 16;14(1):e0210222. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0210222. eCollection 2019.
In the late 1950s and early 1960s the drug Thalidomide was marketed across the world as a non-addictive tranquilizer. Despite being given to pregnant women as a safe treatment for morning sickness, Thalidomide caused serious damage to the unborn child. Much has been written about the drug and the birth defects it caused but evidence about the health of Thalidomide survivors as they age is limited.
The aim of this study was to: explore the health and wellbeing UK Thalidomide survivors; document the health problems experienced by them as they reach their mid-50s; and examine the impacts on their health-related quality of life and employment.
A health and wellbeing survey of 351 UK Thalidomide survivors, which gathered information about home and employment circumstances, recent health problems, and health related quality of life (using SF12 Health Survey). Overall analysis focused on descriptive statistics; the association between respondents' health related quality of life and original impairment was examined using Pearson Correlation; and a three step Hierarchical Regression was used to explore the influence of five factors which narrative responses suggested might be important.
As Thalidomide survivors reach their mid-50's they are experiencing a wide range of secondary health problems, in particular musculoskeletal problems, and depression and anxiety, with multimorbidity a growing issue. These health problems are having a negative impact on their employment (two fifths are unable to work) and their physical health related quality of life, which is significantly poorer than the general population.
Having lived relatively independent lives, many Thalidomide survivors are now having to adjust to growing disability. The study provides further evidence of the accumulative impact of disability over peoples' lifetimes and highlights the value of a life course perspective in understanding the complex experience of growing older with a disability.
在 20 世纪 50 年代末和 60 年代初，药物沙利度胺在全球范围内作为一种非成瘾性镇静剂销售。尽管它被用作孕妇治疗晨吐的安全药物，但沙利度胺却对胎儿造成了严重的损害。关于这种药物及其引起的出生缺陷，已经有很多文献记载，但关于随着年龄增长，沙利度胺幸存者的健康状况的证据有限。
本研究旨在：探索英国沙利度胺幸存者的健康和幸福状况；记录他们在 50 多岁时所经历的健康问题；并研究这些健康问题对他们健康相关生活质量和就业的影响。
对 351 名英国沙利度胺幸存者进行了一项健康和幸福感调查，该调查收集了有关家庭和就业情况、近期健康问题以及健康相关生活质量（使用 SF12 健康调查）的信息。总体分析侧重于描述性统计；使用 Pearson 相关分析研究了受访者健康相关生活质量与原始损伤之间的关系；并使用三步分层回归法探讨了五个因素的影响，叙事性反应表明这些因素可能很重要。
随着沙利度胺幸存者进入 50 多岁，他们正在经历广泛的继发性健康问题，特别是肌肉骨骼问题，以及抑郁和焦虑，多病共存问题日益严重。这些健康问题对他们的就业（五分之二的人无法工作）和他们的身体健康相关生活质量产生了负面影响，其健康相关生活质量明显低于一般人群。
许多沙利度胺幸存者过着相对独立的生活，现在不得不适应日益增加的残疾。该研究进一步证明了残疾在人们一生中的累积影响，并强调了从生命历程的角度理解随着年龄增长而残疾的复杂经历的价值。
