Quality of life and participation of Moroccans victims of the poisoning with adulterated oils a half-century after the outbreak

Abstract

In 1959, the poisoning with adulterated oils is one of the most tragic sanitary catastrophes in Morocco. More than 20,000 persons were affected and a larger number become disabled. Fifty-one years after, many patients continue to report participation restriction and impaired quality of life (QoL). This study aims to evaluate the outcome, QoL and participation of this population, a half-century after the tragedy. We conducted a cross-sectional study in 2010. Among 450 survivors, 111 people were included. A structured interview was carried out to investigate the socio-demographic and clinical aspects. The Functional Independence Measure (FIM) and Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) were used to assess activities limitations, participation restriction and QoL. To study the relationship between quality of life and disability, a univariate analysis was carried out. The Chi 2 test was used for inter-group comparisons. A P -value of 0.05 was adopted as the limit for inclusion of a variable in the multivariate analysis. The average age of the study population is 68 ± 99.9 years with a female predominance (56%). The average age at the time of intoxication is 17 ± 9.97 years. The majority is married (68.5%), illiterate (58%), without any adhesion to the insurance system (79%) with similar cases in the family (63%). The overall average score for QoL is 31.64. Women were significantly more impaired than men. The age of over 65 years, illiterate and the female sex are the 3 factors of participation restrictions and Impaired quality of life in this population. The improvement of the physical, psychic and social care is an urgent and obligatory action in a “right” approach, to ensure an optimal social participation of this population that has suffered and continues to suffer half a century after the outbreak.