Quality of life in individuals with cervical dystonia before botulinum toxin injection in a Brazilian tertiary care hospital.
OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this study was to evaluate quality of life (QoL) in a Brazilian population of individuals with cervical dystonia (CD) without effect of botulinum toxin (BTx) or with only residual effect of BTx, and identify possible physical and social aspects that affect their QoL.


METHODS
Sixty five out of sixty seven consecutive patients with CD were assessed with two instruments: Short-form Health Survey with 36 questions (SF-36) and Toronto Western Spasmodic Torticollis Rating Scale (TWSTRS).


RESULTS
Severity of CD (TWSTRS) correlated moderately with two SF-36 subscale: role-physical (r= -0.42) and body pain (r= -0.43). Women also scored worse in two subscale of SF-36: vitality (p<0.05) and mental-health (p<0.005).


CONCLUSIONS
Severity of CD and gender (female) were the main factors related to a worse QoL perception. These findings may help health professionals to predict which characteristics could lead to worse QoL, and therefore, better target their interventions to lessen the burden caused by CD.
Movement Disorders Clinic of the Division of Neurology, Hospital das Clínicas, University of São Paulo, School of Medicine, Brazil. marianaqueiroz@usp.br
Mariana Ribeiro
MR
Queiroz
Hsin Fen
HF
Chien
Egberto Reis
ER
Barbosa
D001905:Botulinum Toxins / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D019274:Botulinum Toxins, Type A; D004350:Drug Residues; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009465:Neuromuscular Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology*; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012737:Sex Factors; D014103:Torticollis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000523:psychology; D016896:Treatment Outcome
D009465:Neuromuscular Agents; D001905:Botulinum Toxins; D019274:Botulinum Toxins, Type A