[The quality of life of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and correlated factors].
OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the quality of life (QOL) of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and correlated factors.


METHODS
Data of 20 245 patients with COPD were collected from the cross-sectional survey of COPD, which was conducted between 2002 and 2004 in urban and rural areas of Beijing, Shanghai, Guangdong, Liaoning, Tianjin, Chongqing and Shanxi for residents aged over 40 years old. The recruited populations were interviewed with questionnaire and tested for spirometry. The quality of life was assessed with 12-item short-form health survey questionnaire (SF-12). Those with less than 70% of post-bronchodilator FEV(1)/FVC were identified as having COPD. The differences between groups in SF-12 scores converted by rank were compared using general linear model. Stepwise multiple linear regressions were conducted to study the main determinants of QOL.


RESULTS
Compared to subjects without COPD, those with COPD had impaired QOL (56 +/- 7 vs. 57 +/- 6 in mental component scores, F = 4.442, P < 0.05; 46 +/- 9 vs. 50 +/- 6 in physical component scores, F = 453.960, P < 0.05). Among COPD patients, the mental component score was associated with scores of dyspnea, BMI, comorbidities, sex and living areas, while the physical component score was associated with scores of dyspnea, severity of COPD, comorbidities, exposure to dusts/gases/fumes, sex, age, educational level and previous diagnosis of respiratory diseases (all P < 0.05).


CONCLUSIONS
The QOL in patients with COPD was impaired and associated with scores of dyspnea, severity of COPD, comorbidities and BMI. Improvement of dyspnea, nutritional support, prevention of comorbidities and keeping away from risk factors may improve the QOL in COPD patients.
Zhou
Yu-Min
YM
State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, Guangzhou Institute of Respiratory Disease, the First Affiliated Hospital, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou 510120, China.
Wang
Chen
C
Yao
Wan-Zhen
WZ
Chen
Ping
P
Kang
Jian
J
Huang
Shao-Guang
SG
Chen
Bao-Yuan
BY
Wang
Chang-Zheng
CZ
Ni
Dian-Tao
DT
Wang
Xiao-Ping
XP
Wang
Da-Li
DL
Liu
Sheng-Ming
SM
Lü
Jia-Chun
JC
Zheng
Jin-Ping
JP
Zhong
Nan-Shan
NS
Ran
Pi-Xin
PX
D000368:Aged; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D029424:Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive / Q000453:epidemiology*; D011788:Quality of Life; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires