Drug Use-related Problems Are Associated with Poorer Health-related Quality of Life: A Community Study of Korean Adults.

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This study aimed to assess the prevalence of drug use-related problems in a Korean community sample and to examine the association between drug use-related problems and health-related quality of life (HRQOL). Data were collected from 500 community-dwelling adults residing in Jeju, Korea. Drug use-related problems were assessed using the Drug Abuse Screening Test-10, and HRQOL was measured using the 26-item abbreviated version of the World Health Organization Quality of Life instrument. A total of 25 participants (5.0%) reported experiencing drug use-related problems in the previous 12 months. Multivariate analysis revealed that drug use-related problems were significantly associated with lower scores in all HRQOL domains, i.e., physical health, psychological health, social relationships, and environment, even after adjusting for relevant covariates. Drug use-related problems were strongly associated with poorer HRQOL. These findings imply that clinicians should pay close attention to HRQOL when evaluating and treating individuals with illicit drug use.