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The Impact of Demographic Characteristics on Health-related Quality of Life Profile of Malaysian Epilepsy Population

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Abstract

The possibilities of adverse drug reactions and disease-related psychosocial implications have led to the current emphasis on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) assessment in epilepsy. The main objective of this study was to determine the impact of various demographic characteristics i.e. gender, age, marital status, ethnic origin, religion, and employment status on HRQoL profiles in Malaysian epilepsy patients. Patients with epilepsy were recruited from ten public hospitals in Sabah, Malaysia. Upon written consents, they completed the Malay Quality of Life In Epilepsy-30 (QOLIE-30) instrument which assesses Seizure Worry, Overall QoL, Emotional Well-Being, Energy/Fatigue, Cognitive Functioning, Medication Effects and Social Functioning. An Overall Score was generated to represent a summarised HRQoL score. Univariate and multiple linear regression analyses were both carried out using SPSS 14 for (1) all patients and (2) patients possessing Poor QoL (Overall Score < median) and Good QoL (Overall Score ≥ median). One-hundred-and-thirteen patients participated in the study. The respondents ranged from 18–76 years with a mean age of 31 years. Majority were Kadazandusuns (n = 46; 40.7%) and many were unmarried (n = 68; 60.2%), Muslims (n = 50; 44.2%) and unemployed (n = 54; 47.8%). Age was the most significant factor across all patients (B = −0.372, t = −2.238, p = 0.027), regardless of Poor or Good QoL level. Older patients (>56 years) fared the worst in many HRQoL areas. Those with Poor QoL were mostly affected by marital status (widowed/divorced) and ethnic origin (Kadazandusun/Chinese). Religion (Buddhism/Hinduism) emerged as the most prominent HRQoL predictor for patients experiencing Good QoL and being Chinese too played a role. These outcomes indicate that specific demographic characteristics are influential in determining the HRQoL of epilepsy patients. Consequently, healthcare professionals could utilise such information in planning the best treatment and care by considering both the medical and psychosocial impacts towards patients.

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Acknowledgement

This study was supported by Universiti Malaysia Sabah fundamental research grant A-005-14-ER/U059. We are grateful for the ethical approval from Medical Research and Ethics Committee, Ministry of Health, Malaysia. The cooperation and help from directors, hospital staff, research coordinators, patients of Hospital Queen Elizabeth, Hospital Mesra Bukit Padang, Hospital Tuaran, Hospital Kota Belud, Hospital Sandakan, Hospital Tawau, Hospital Papar, Hospital Beaufort, Hospital Keningau, Hospital Kudat and Hospital Lahad Datu are greatly appreciated. Last but not least, our sincere thank to any individual who had either contributed directly or indirectly to the success of this study, up to the point of its manuscript publication.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Medicine & Health Sciences, Universiti Darul Iman Malaysia, Kampus Kota, Jln Sultan Mahmud, 20400, K. Terengganu, Malaysia

    Pei Lin Lua

  2. Faculty of Information Technology and Quantitative Sciences, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Shah Alam, 40450, Selangor, Malaysia

    Halilah Haron

  3. School of Psychology and Social Work, Universiti Malaysia Sabah, Kota Kinabalu, 88999, Sabah, Malaysia

    Getrude Cosmas & Nurul Hudani Md. Nawi

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  1. Pei Lin Lua
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  2. Halilah Haron
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  4. Nurul Hudani Md. Nawi
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Correspondence to Pei Lin Lua.

Additional information

This paper was part of a research project and majority of its components had been presented at the 7th Conference On International Society For Quality Of Life Studies (ISQoLS) 2006, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa, 17–20 July 2006.

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Lua, P.L., Haron, H., Cosmas, G. et al. The Impact of Demographic Characteristics on Health-related Quality of Life Profile of Malaysian Epilepsy Population. Applied Research Quality Life 2, 247–271 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11482-008-9041-y

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