Assessment of Health-Related Quality of Life Among Patients with Chronic Diseases and Its Relationship with Multimorbidity: A Cross-Sectional Study from Saudi Arabia

Abdulaziz Ibrahim Alzarea; Yusra Habib Khan; Sami I Alzarea; Abdullah Salah Alanazi; Omar Awad Alsaidan; Maily J Alrowily; Monefah Al-Shammari; Ziyad Saeed Almalki; Majed A Algarni; Tauqeer Hussain Mallhi

doi:10.2147/PPA.S448915

Assessment of Health-Related Quality of Life Among Patients with Chronic Diseases and Its Relationship with Multimorbidity: A Cross-Sectional Study from Saudi Arabia

Patient Prefer Adherence. 2024 Jun 4:18:1077-1094. doi: 10.2147/PPA.S448915. eCollection 2024.

Affiliations

¹ Department of Clinical Pharmacy, College of Pharmacy, Jouf University, Sakaka, Al-Jouf, Saudi Arabia.
² Department of Pharmacology, College of Pharmacy, Jouf University, Sakaka, Al-Jouf, Saudi Arabia.
³ Department of Pharmaceutics, College of Pharmacy, Jouf University, Sakaka, Al-Jouf, Saudi Arabia.
⁴ Department of Radiology, Aljouf Health Cluster, Domat Al-Jandal, Al-Jouf, Saudi Arabia.
⁵ Domat Al-Jandal General Hospital, Aljouf Health Cluster, Domat Al Jandal, Al-Jouf, Saudi Arabia.
⁶ Department of Clinical Pharmacy, College of Pharmacy, Prince Sattam Bin Abdulaziz University, Al-Kharj, Saudi Arabia.
⁷ Department of Clinical pharmacy, College of pharmacy, Taif university, Taif, Saudi Arabia.

Abstract

Objective: Chronic diseases hold the potential to worsen the overall health of patients by limiting their functional status, productivity, and capacity to live well, affecting their overall health-related quality of life (HRQoL). The purpose of the study was to assess the HRQoL of individuals with chronic diseases residing in the Al-Jouf region of Saudi Arabia. Furthermore, the current study also sought to ascertain the impact of multimorbidity and the duration of illness on HRQoL.

Material and methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among the residents of Al-Jouf region for a period of 6 months. A self-administered EuroQoL (EQ-5D-5L) study tool was used. Appropriate statistical analysis was conducted to ascertain the relationship between various variables and HRQoL.

Results: A total of 500 out of 562 participants completed the study, with a response rate of 88.97%. Participants had a mean age of 46.15 ± 16.79 years, and the majority were female (n = 299; 59.80%). A mean HRQoL score of 0.82 ± 0.20 was reported, poorest in patients with kidney failure (0.65 ± 0.26) and highest in hepatitis. However, nearly half of the participants had diabetes mellitus type II (n = 205, 39.20%). Patients aged <30 years (OR: 0.109; p = 0.002), male participants (OR: 0.053; p < 0.001), no disability (OR: 0.143; p = 0.002), and <2 comorbid diseases (0.84 ± 0.18; p < 0.001) reported better QoL. Additionally, comorbid conditions such as DM, prolong the duration of the overall illness (14.19 ± 7.67 years). Overall, imperfect health (n = 390, 78%) was reported by the study participants.

Conclusion: The present study provided preliminary data about the current HRQoL status of individuals with imperfect health and lower HRQoL. In the future, large-scale longitudinal studies are required to investigate the most prevalent chronic diseases, their associations, and change in HRQoL, as there is a dearth of information in the Saudi population.

Keywords: EQ-5D-5L; HRQoL; Saudi Arabia; chronic diseases; diabetes mellitus; disease outcomes; hypertension; quality of life.

Grants and funding

The authors extend their appreciation to the Deputyship for Research and Innovation, Ministry of Education in Saudi Arabia, for funding this research work through Project Number 223202.