Specific quality of life factors in patients with inflammatory bowel disease

Abstract

Inflammatory bowel disease is a chronic disease with a fluctuating course and unknown origin. Its two major forms are Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis. The authors attempted to analyse the quality of life of patients with inflammatory bowel disease as compared to healthy persons and patients with asthma in order to identify specific factors which most significantly affect the quality of life of these patients. 269 subjects participated in the study (control group, 115 subjects; Crohn's disease, 67 patients; ulcerative colitis, 25 patients; asthma, 62 patients). The following methods were used: WHO-5, IIRS, SIBDQ and AQLQ(S) questionnaires and content analysis. Patients with inflammatory bowel disease had the worst quality of life with respect to both subjective well-being and burden of disease. The results obtained from questionnaires developed for the analysis of quality of life indicated that extraintestinal symptoms and emotional problems are the major factors which interfere with the quality of life of patients with inflammatory bowel disease. These findings were confirmed by content analysis of interviews with patients. The authors recommend that more attention should be paid to improving the quality of life of patients with inflammatory bowel disease and helping them to live with the illness, especially at the level of interpersonal relations.