title: Quality of life of individuals with stroke and their caregivers in a city of Triângulo Mineiro.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To compare the quality of life (QoL) of individuals with stroke and their caregivers.
  
  
  METHODS
  This is an observational cross-sectional survey, involving 83 individuals who suffered a stroke. The participants were divided into four groups: group of individuals with stroke who have caregivers (44), group of individuals with stroke without caregivers (39), group of caregivers (44) and a reference group (83) in the period of March to May 2010. To assess QoL, the instrument used was the WHOQOL-bref.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The highest scores for the four fields were observed increasingly for the group of individuals with stroke with caregivers, the stroke group without caregivers followed by the group of caregivers and the reference group. The comparison of scores between groups showed that the presence of stroke and the fact of being caregiver affect QoL in all domains of WHOQOL-bref.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  It was possible to understand the negative impact that stroke causes in the lives of the affected ones and their caregivers, in order to better target public health policies.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosciences and Behavioral Sciences, Faculty of Medicine of Ribeirao Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brasil.
authors.forename: Mary Lícia
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: de Lima
authors.affiliation: Departament of Medicin, Faculty of Medicine of Ribeirao Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brasil.
authors.forename: Jair Lício Ferreira
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Santos
authors.affiliation: Departament of General Nursing and Nursing, School of Ribeirao Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brasil.
authors.forename: Namie Okino
authors.initials: NO
authors.lastname: Sawada
authors.affiliation: Instituto Federal do Triangulo Mineiro, Uberaba, MG, Brasil.
authors.forename: Lívia Aparecida Pereira
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: de Lima
mesh_terms: D001938:Brazil; D017028:Caregivers; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011788:Quality of Life; D020521:Stroke / Q000628:therapy; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires