OBJECTIVE: The principal aim of the present study is to evaluate the influence of socio-demographic and clinical variables on health-related quality of life (HRQL) in patients with inflammatory bowel disease. PATIENTS AND METHOD: This was a cross-sectional study. health-related quality of life was measured with the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Questionnaire (IBDQ). A total of 120 patients, 60 with ulcerative colitis and 60 with Crohn s disease, participated in the study. RESULTS: No significant differences were observed between ulcerative colitis and Crohn s disease patients in IBDQ dimensions. However, a multivariate analysis revealed that sex, type of treatment, extraintestinal symptoms, number of relapses in previous year, satisfaction with surgery, and need for psychological support were related to HRQL. CONCLUSIONS: The identification of these variables associated with HRQL in patients with inflammatory bowel disease shows them to be basically non-disease factors. Knowledge of such elements can turn out to be very useful in order to guide future research and modify specific factors in further interventions.
OBJECTIVE: The principal aim of the present study is to evaluate the influence of socio-demographic and clinical variables on health-related quality of life (HRQL) in patients with inflammatory bowel disease. PATIENTS AND METHOD: This was a cross-sectional study. health-related quality of life was measured with the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Questionnaire (IBDQ). A total of 120 patients, 60 with ulcerative colitis and 60 with Crohn s disease, participated in the study. RESULTS: No significant differences were observed between ulcerative colitis and Crohn s diseasepatients in IBDQ dimensions. However, a multivariate analysis revealed that sex, type of treatment, extraintestinal symptoms, number of relapses in previous year, satisfaction with surgery, and need for psychological support were related to HRQL. CONCLUSIONS: The identification of these variables associated with HRQL in patients with inflammatory bowel disease shows them to be basically non-disease factors. Knowledge of such elements can turn out to be very useful in order to guide future research and modify specific factors in further interventions.