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Purpose: The objective of this review is to assess health related quality of life (HRQOL) among persons with diabetes mellitus and to obtain pooled estimates for various subpopulations.
Methods: A systematic review of the literature was performed for studies measuring HRQOL among persons with diabetes using the SF-36 questionnaire. For intervention studies, only the HRQOL measure at baseline was used. Pooled estimates were obtained using a random effects model.
Results: A total of 49 studies with 15,823 participants were included in our analysis. The 8 component scores of the SF-36 ranged from 50.3 (general health) to 73.8 (social function), where 0 represents the lowest and 100 the maximum level of health. The mental health summary score was 51.6 and the physical health summary score was 49.4. Among persons with type 1 diabetes, both summary scores, general health status, social function, and mental health were similar to scores among persons with type 2 diabetes. Physical function, role limitation due to physical problems, and role limitation due to emotional problems were scored higher (i.e. less disability) among those with type 1 diabetes (all unadjusted). Persons >65 years had lower component scores than persons <65. Persons with diabetes diagnosed <1 year previously (3 studies) had lower summary scores than persons with disease for >1 year. Compared to scores previously reported among persons with diabetes [1], our pooled estimates were lower for scores of social function, mental health, and role limitation secondary to mental problems, and higher for scores of physical function. All component scores were much lower than those of the US general population [1].
Conclusions: We present estimates of HRQOL achieved by pooling data from a large number studies. Diabetes significantly affects both the mental and physical components of HRQOL as measured by the SF-36 and some subpopulations are affected more than others. These estimates provide useful population norms.
[1] Ware JE Jr. SF-36 health survey: manual and interpretation guide. Boston: The Health Institute, New England Medical Center; 1993.
See more of Poster Session - Utility Theory; Health Economics; Patient & Physician Preferences; Simulation; Technology Assessment
See more of The 26th Annual Meeting of the Society for Medical Decision Making (October 17-20, 2004)