Health-related quality of life--Puerto Rico, 1996-2000.

Although a number of studies have been made to determine the health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of persons living in the United States, no overall assessment of HRQOL has been conducted previously for residents of Puerto Rico. To determine the HRQOL of adults living in Puerto Rico, during 1996-2000, as part of the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS), interviews were conducted in Spanish with a representative sample of Puerto Rican adults. Older women, persons with less education or lower income, persons unable to work, and those who were overweight or who had diabetes or high blood pressure reported more days for which they were physically or mentally unhealthy during the 30 days preceding the survey. Interventions designed to reach these vulnerable, demographic, socioeconomic, and behavioral risk groups might help adults in Puerto Rico increase their quality and years of healthy life and eliminate health disparities.