Association Between Urine Uric Acid Levels and Quality of Life in Academicians and Non-academicians in UTAR, Kampar

Abstract

Studies have showed that poor quality of life (QoL) such as work stress and unhealthy diet of high purine rich food elevate uric acid level in urine and blood. High urine uric acid (UUA) level can cause hyperuricemia, which can lead to gout, cardiovascular disease, chronic kidney disease, hypertension, type 2 diabetes and obesity. Our study aimed to investigate the associations between UUA levels and QoL among academicians and non-academicians in Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR), Kampar. A cross-sectional survey using systematic random sampling was conducted among academicians and non-academicians in UTAR. A self-designed socio-demographic form and WHOQOL_BREF questionnaire were distributed together with a urine sample containers (60 ml) among academicians and non-academicians who gave written consent. The collected urine sample was analyzed using Architect c4000 (Abbott), clinical chemistry analyzer. Collected data was analysed using SPSS software (Ver. 19). A total of 100 participants were enrolled in the study with response rate of 60%. The study found positive association between physical domain factors (WHOQOL_BREF) with UUA levels (p-value <0.05). This study findings signal QoL factors to consider in managing UUA level among academicians and non-academicians in higher education institution.