title: The relationships among social support and quality of life in persons living with HIV/AIDS in Jiangxi and Zhejiang provinces, China.
abstract: Several empirical studies, particularly those conducted in developed countries, have linked social support to quality of life among persons living with HIV/AIDS (PLWA). However, few studies have been conducted in developing countries, such as China; therefore, the question of any association being present between social support and quality of life in PLWA in China remains unanswered. This retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted to examine the relationships between social support and quality of life among PLWA in the Jiangxi and Zhejiang provinces of China. A total of 377 PLWA participated in this study, and questionnaires used included demographics, the Chinese Medical Outcomes Study Short Form-36, and a Social Support Rating Scale, all of which were collected through face-to-face interviews between 1 March and 15 April 2013 in six different County Centers of Disease Control and Prevention in Jiangxi and Zhejiang provinces, and one hospital in the Jiangxi. The health-related quality of life score was 64.7±13.5 (out of a total score of 100), which was significantly lower than the national norm level of 78.2±15.9. The total score of social support was 29.4±7.8 (full score 66). The canonical correlation between social support and quality of participants' lives was shown to be statistically significant (p<0.0001). The relationship between subjective support and quality of life among PLWA was also significant (p=0.004). Subjective support and the use of social support showed a positive correlation with vitality, role-physical, and role-emotional, and a negative correlation with body pain. The current study suggests that PLWA with lower social support have diminished quality of life.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics , Nanchang University , Nanchang , P.R. China.
authors.forename: Guilian
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Lan
authors.forename: Zhaokang
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Yuan
authors.forename: Angelie
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cook
authors.forename: Qunying
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.forename: Hongying
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Jiang
authors.forename: Huilie
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zheng
authors.forename: Li
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Lingling
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Yuan
authors.forename: Xiaoxu
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Xie
authors.forename: Yuanan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Lu
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D011788:Quality of Life; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012944:Social Support; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: HIV/AIDS; Jiangxi; Zhejiang; canonical correlation; quality of life; social support