title: Health-Related Quality of Life in Persons With Ostomies Managed in an Outpatient Care Setting.
abstract: We examined health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in persons with ostomies receiving outpatient care. We also analyzed relationships among HRQOL, demographic, and pertinent clinical factors.
  
  
  
  We used a descriptive, exploratory, cross-sectional study design to collect and analyze data. Data in this article are a secondary analysis of data collected from a primary study, developed by Santos and Gomboski, on the adaptation and validation of the City of Hope-Quality of Life-Ostomy Questionnaire (COH-QOL-OQ) to the Portuguese language in Brazil.
  
  
  
  A convenience sample of 215 adults living with an ostomy was evaluated. Slightly more than half (51.6%) were men, 67.5% underwent colostomy surgery, and 59.1% underwent cancer-related ostomy surgery. Subjects received care in specialized health care units in 3 cities in the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul.
  
  
  
  After approval by the Research Ethics Committee and permission from health care units, data were collected using 2 instruments: the World Health Organization Quality of Life-Short Version (WHOQOL-Bref) (generic HRQOL instrument) and the COH-QOL-OQ (disease specific HRQOL instrument). Data were analyzed using χ test and logistic regression (via a stepwise forward method). Patients were classified into 3 groups according to the means and standard deviations of the scores: low, moderate, and high quality of life (QOL).
  
  
  
  Ostomy patients had total scores of 69.6 ± 20.2 and 6.1 ± 1.4 for the WHOQOL-Bref and COH-QOL-OQ instruments, respectively. Patients with shorter times since their ostomy creation had worse scores on both the specific QOL (P = .006) and generic QOL (P = .019) instruments. Patients who did not practice religion (P = .027; odds ratio [OR] = 3.39) and those without a partner/spouse (P = .007; OR = 4.90) had increased probability of having worse scores on the WHOQOL-Bref (generic instrument).
  
  
  
  Persons living with ostomies were found to have scores indicating moderate HRQOL on a disease-specific and generic instrument. Shorter time since ostomy creation, lack of religious practice, and lack of a partner negatively influenced the HRQOL of these patients.
authors.affiliation: Vera Lucia Conceição de Gouveia Santos, PhD, MSN, BSN, CETN (TiSOBEST), Department of Medical-Surgical Nursing, University of São Paulo School of Nursing, São Paulo, SP, Brazil. Fabiana da Silva Augusto, BSN, ETN, University of São Paulo School of Nursing, São Paulo, SP, Brazil. Gustavo Gomboski, MSN, BSN, ETN, University of São Paulo School of Nursing, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Vera Lucia Conceição de Gouveia
authors.initials: VL
authors.lastname: Santos
authors.forename: Fabiana da Silva
authors.initials: FS
authors.lastname: Augusto
authors.forename: Gustavo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Gomboski
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000553:Ambulatory Care; D001938:Brazil; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010030:Ostomy; D011788:Quality of Life; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013997:Time Factors