Short-term evolution of vasovagal syncope: influence on the quality of life.
To evaluate the short-term evolution and changes in the quality of life (QoL) of patients suffering from vasovagal syncope (VVS) by the application of the Short Form 36 questionnaire (SF-36) that was prospectively administrated to all consecutive patients with syncope and abnormal response to head-up tilt test. We included 167 patients (55.7% women, median age 42 years old). During a 6-month follow-up, recurrence was observed in 33 patients (19.8%). The mean recurrence-free time was 6.2+/-0.34 months. Among those patients with and without relapses, there were only differences in the previous number of syncopes (6 vs. 3, p=0.0051). Of them, 19 (11%) only presented 1 syncopal relapse and 14 (8.2%) presented more than 1. There were differences in the time until the first relapse [4 months (2.3-5.4) vs. 1.6 months (0.8-3.3), p=0.002] and an inverse correlation between the time until the appearance of recurrences and their number (r2 Spearman=-0.54, p=0.002). In just 6 months, those patients who had recurrence had a worse QoL than those who did not, in 7 dimensions of the SF-36 questionnaire. In the short-term, one in every five patients with VVS had at least 1 relapse, and if it is very early, it can recur in up to 8% of them. The QoL of these patients is correlated with the appearance of relapses.
Cardiology Department, Hospital Universitario Virgen del Rocío, Seville, Spain. gbaron@jet.es
Gonzalo
G
Barón-Esquivias
Silvia
S
Gómez
Almudena
A
Aguilera
Ana
A
Campos
Nieves
N
Romero
Aurelio
A
Cayuela
Juan I
JI
Valle
Mercedes
M
Redondo
Alonso
A
Pedrote
José
J
Burgos
Angel
A
Martínez
Francisco
F
Errázquin
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D015716:Electrocardiography, Ambulatory; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011187:Posture / Q000502:physiology; D011788:Quality of Life; D012008:Recurrence; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D019462:Syncope, Vasovagal / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology*; D013997:Time Factors