Department of Psychology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, NO-7491, Trondheim, Norway.
Health and Welfare, Trondheim Municipality, Trondheim, Norway.
Qual Life Res. 2023 Nov;32(11):3135-3145. doi: 10.1007/s11136-023-03461-7. Epub 2023 Jun 20.
Health-related quality of life (HRQoL) is an important aspect of mental health outcomes. There are few studies on HRQoL in heterogeneous patient populations seeking help at community mental health services. The aims of the study were to compare how HRQoL, measured by the EuroQol five dimensions with five levels (EQ-5D-5L), was distributed compared to other samples from national and international studies, and to explore what factors are associated with HRQoL.
In a cross-sectional study, 1379 Norwegian outpatients reported their HRQoL before starting treatment. Associations with demographic variables, job status, socio-economic status, and use of pain medication were examined using multiple regression analysis.
Most of the sample, 70% to 90%, reported problems with usual activities, pain/discomfort, and anxiety/depression; 30% to 65% reported that these problems were of a moderate to extreme degree. Forty percent reported problems with mobility, and about 20% reported problems with self-care. The sample's HRQoL was considerably lower than the general population, and comparable to patient-groups from specialist mental health services. Originating from a developing country, lower level of education, lower yearly household income, being on sick leave or unemployed, and using pain medication were associated with lower HRQoL. Age, gender, and relationship status were not associated with HRQoL. This is the first study to simultaneously examine the unique contribution of these variables in one study.
The most impacted domains of HRQoL were pain/discomfort, anxiety/depression, and usual activities. Lower HRQoL was associated with several socio-demographic factors and use of pain medication. These findings might have clinical implications and suggest that mental health professionals should routinely measure HRQoL in addition to symptom severity, to identify areas that should be targeted to improve HRQoL.
健康相关生活质量（HRQoL）是心理健康结果的一个重要方面。在寻求社区心理健康服务帮助的异质患者群体中，关于 HRQoL 的研究很少。本研究的目的是比较通过欧洲五维健康量表（EQ-5D-5L）测量的 HRQoL 在分布上与来自国内外研究的其他样本有何不同，并探讨哪些因素与 HRQoL 相关。
在一项横断面研究中，1379 名挪威门诊患者在开始治疗前报告了他们的 HRQoL。使用多元回归分析检查与人口统计学变量、工作状况、社会经济地位和使用止痛药相关的因素。
大多数样本（70%至 90%）报告在日常活动、疼痛/不适和焦虑/抑郁方面存在问题；30%至 65%的报告表明这些问题处于中度到重度程度。40%的报告在移动性方面存在问题，约 20%的报告在自理方面存在问题。该样本的 HRQoL 明显低于一般人群，与专科心理健康服务的患者群体相当。来自发展中国家、教育水平较低、年收入较低、请病假或失业以及使用止痛药与较低的 HRQoL 相关。年龄、性别和婚姻状况与 HRQoL 无关。这是第一项同时在一项研究中检查这些变量独特贡献的研究。
HRQoL 受影响最大的领域是疼痛/不适、焦虑/抑郁和日常活动。较低的 HRQoL 与几个社会人口因素和使用止痛药有关。这些发现可能具有临床意义，并表明心理健康专业人员除了症状严重程度外，还应常规测量 HRQoL，以确定需要改善 HRQoL 的领域。
