title: A 6-year Follow-up survey of health status in middle-aged women with Turner syndrome.
abstract: Studies suggest younger women with Turner syndrome (TS) have good quality of life. Less is known about everyday functioning in adults with TS. In a 6-year follow-up study, multiple areas of functioning were compared between TS women and controls.
  
  
  
  Women with TS and controls were mailed a self-report survey 6 years after a baseline study.
  
  
  
  Fifty-seven women with TS (M age 40·6 ± 11·1 years) and 101 controls (M age 38·8 ± 10·6 years, ns) responded.
  
  
  
  Measures of background information, experienced life strain and presence/impact of health conditions were developed for this study. The QPS Nordic measured perceived workload challenges. The LiSat-9 measured life satisfaction. The Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale measured self-esteem.
  
  
  
  More TS women lived alone, fewer had biological children, and more had adoptive children. TS women reported fewer sex partners and less sexual confidence. Controls had higher education. There was no difference in employment status. More TS women received disability pensions. TS women reported their work as more physically challenging, less positively challenging and requiring less knowledge skills. TS women experienced more life strain in school, adolescence and late working life. Controls reported higher overall life satisfaction, with no difference between samples on specific domains. TS women reported lower self-esteem. For TS women only, physical health at baseline predicted length of education and mental health at baseline predicted self-esteem.
  
  
  
  Women with TS face more challenges than controls on several domains of functioning. Early physical and mental health may influence later educational achievement and self-esteem for women with TS.
authors.affiliation: Frambu Resource Center for Rare Disorders, Siggerud, Norway.|Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Siggerud, Norway.
authors.forename: Krister W
authors.initials: KW
authors.lastname: Fjermestad
authors.affiliation: Frambu Resource Center for Rare Disorders, Siggerud, Norway.
authors.forename: Eva E
authors.initials: EE
authors.lastname: Naess
authors.affiliation: Frambu Resource Center for Rare Disorders, Siggerud, Norway.
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Bahr
authors.affiliation: Department of Endocrinology and Internal Medicine, Aarhus University Hospital, Denmark.|Department of Molecular Medicine, Aarhus University Hospital, Denmark.
authors.forename: Claus H
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Gravholt
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D004522:Educational Status; D004651:Employment; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D012649:Self Concept; D057566:Self Report; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014424:Turner Syndrome / Q000523:psychology*