Research
Health related quality of life six months following surgical treatment for secondary peritonitis – using the EQ-5D questionnaire
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* Corresponding author: Kimberly R Boer k.r.boer@amc.nl
1 Department of Clinical Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
2 Department of Surgery, Academic Medical Center Amsterdam, The Netherlands
3 Department of Surgery, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
4 Department of Surgery, Reinier de Graaf Hospital, Delft, The Netherlands
5 Department of Surgery, Gelre Hospital, Apeldoorn, The Netherlands
6 Department of Surgery, Onze Lieve Vrouwe Gasthuis, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
7 Department of Surgery, Sint Lucas Andreas Hospital, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
8 Department of Medical Psychology, Academic Medical Center Amsterdam, The Netherlands
9 Department of Surgery, Academic Medical Center Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Health and Quality of Life Outcomes 2007, 5:35 doi:10.1186/1477-7525-5-35
Published: 2 July 2007Abstract
Background
To compare health related quality of life (HR-QoL) in patients surgically treated for secondary peritonitis to that of a healthy population. And to prospectively identify factors associated with poorer (lower) HR-QoL.
Design
A prospective cohort of secondary peritonitis patients was mailed the EQ-5D and EQ-VAS 6-months following initial laparotomy.
Setting
Multicenter study in two academic and seven regional teaching hospitals.
Patients
130 of the 155 eligible patients (84%) responded to the HR-QoL questionnaires.
Results
HR-QoL was significantly worse on all dimensions in peritonitis patients than in a healthy reference population. Peritonitis characteristics at initial presentation were not associated with HR-QoL at six months. A more complicated course of the disease leading to longer hospitalization times and patients with an enterostomy had a negative impact on the mobility (p = 0.02), self-care (p < 0.001) and daily activities: (p = 0.01). In a multivariate analysis for the EQ-VAS every doubling of hospital stay decreases the EQ-VAS by 3.8 points (p = 0.015). Morbidity during the six-month follow-up was not found to be predictive for the EQ-5D or EQ-VAS.
Conclusion
Six months following initial surgery, patients with secondary peritonitis report more problems in HR-QoL than a healthy reference population. Unfavorable disease characteristics at initial presentation were not predictive for poorer HR-QoL, but a more complicated course of the disease was most predictive of HR-QoL at 6 months.