Quality of life in patients with heart failure

Introduction: Patients with Heart Failure (HF) present low Quality of Life (QL) indicators and increased incidence of mental disorders in relation to the general population so as to other chronic diseases.

Aim: The aim of the present study was to assess the quality of life in patients with heart failure.

Material and Methods: This is a retrospective study which studied sample consisted of 42 patients hospitalized in a cardiology department of Attica Tertiary Hospital. The Minnesota Living with Heart Failure Questionnaire (MLHFQ) weighted questionnaire was used to collect data, and patients with heart failure were included in the study according to the latest 2016 guidelines. Data analysis was performed using the SPSS statistical program ver.17.

Results: Via telephone communication with patients or their relatives it was found that 19 out of 61 patients (31.1%) died before the time of telephone communication. Thus, the statistical analysis included patients in life (n = 42). The mean age of patients was 67.8 years (± 13.6), while 85.8% were men. Regarding quality of life (MLHFQ), no statistically significant difference was found between the two genders and the subscales studied. However, a statistically significant effect of the independent variable on a subscale for quality of life was found, ie the three categories related to obesity status differ statistically significantly in the difficulty presented by these patients during their night sleep, [F (2 , 15) = 5,623, (p <0.05)].

Conclusions: The quality of life of patients with HF appeared to be affected by their obesity status. Further studies need to be conducted to investigate the quality of life in relation to comorbidities such as obesity.

Keywords: heart failure, quality of life,   risk factors