title: Five-year effect of community-based intervention Hartslag Limburg on quality of life: a longitudinal cohort study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  During the past decade, quality of life (QoL) has become an accepted measure of disease impact, therapeutic outcome, and evaluation of interventions. So far, very little is known about the effects of community-based interventions on people's QoL. Therefore, the effect of an integrative cardiovascular diseases community-based intervention programme 'Hartslag Limburg' on QoL after 5-years of intervention is studied.
  
  
  METHODS
  A longitudinal cohort study comparing 5-year mean change in QoL between the intervention (n = 2356) and reference group (n = 758). QoL outcomes were the physical and mental health composite scores (PCS and MCS) measured by the RAND-36. Analyses were stratified for gender and socio-economic status (SES).
  
  
  RESULTS
  After 5-years of intervention we found no difference in mean change in PCS and MCS between the intervention and reference group in both genders and low-SES. However, for the moderate/high SES intervention group, the scales social functioning (-3.6, 95% CI:-6.1 to -1.2), physical role limitations (-5.3, 95% CI:-9.6 to -1.0), general mental health (-3.0, 95% CI:-4.7 to -1.3), vitality (-3.2, 95% CI:-5.1 to -1.3), and MCS (-1.8, 95% CI:-2.9 to -0.6) significantly changed compared with the reference group. These differences were due to a slight decrease of QoL in the intervention group and an increase of QoL in the reference group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Hartslag Limburg has no beneficial effect on people's physical and mental QoL after 5-years of intervention. In fact, subjects in the intervention group with a moderate/high SES, show a decrease on their mental QoL compared with the reference group.
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Sciences VU University, Amsterdam, the Netherlands. saskiaverkleij@live.nl
authors.forename: Saskia Pj
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: Verkleij
authors.forename: Marcel C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Adriaanse
authors.forename: Wm Monique
authors.initials: WM
authors.lastname: Verschuren
authors.forename: Eric C
authors.initials: EC
authors.lastname: Ruland
authors.forename: Gerrie C W
authors.initials: GC
authors.lastname: Wendel-Vos
authors.forename: Albertine J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Schuit
mesh_terms: D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000523:psychology*; D003153:Community Health Services / Q000379:methods; D018752:Diet, Fat-Restricted; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D015438:Health Behavior; D006293:Health Promotion / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009043:Motor Activity; D009426:Netherlands; D011204:Poverty Areas; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology*; D018434:Sickness Impact Profile; D016540:Smoking Cessation; D012923:Social Class