The relationship between the experience of negative feelings and quality of life and the socio-demographical factors of patients treated for spinal discopathy of the lumbar spine

Abstract

Most of the pathological changes in the spine begin with the physiological loss of intervertebral disc function. Discopathy of the lumbar spine leads to a significant deterioration in the quality of life, which is why the therapeutic team strives is to improve patients quality of life through actions aimed at reducing spinal dysfunction to an extent that allows for human functioning. The research aim was to determine the quality of life of patients who had been treated as a result of discopathy of the lumbar spine and to establish the relationship between the experience of negative feelings and a subjective assessment of the quality of life with factors resulting frompatient socio-demographics. The study included 110 patients treated for lumbar discopathy. A diagnostic survey method was employed as a research technique, with the use of a proprietary survey questionnaire. Statistic analysis of the results was performedusing the statistical package PQStat v1.6.6. Subjective evaluation of patients quality of life in 66 persons (60%) was at an average level, only 6 (5.45%) respondents rated the quality of their lives as being higher. Those living in towns of up to 50,000 residents rated their quality of life higher (6.21), with the lowest level being reported by those living in the countryside (4.95). Age did not influence significantly the quality of life, but older people most often experienced pain (p=0.4). Analysis of variance did not show statistically significant differences between marital status and respondent quality of life (p = 0.53) but did show significant differences between education levels and the incidence of negative feelings such as fear, anxiety or depression. Socio-demographic variables: such as gender, age and marital status do not significantly differentiate the quality of life of the respondents. There is a relationship between experiencing negative feelings and educational levels. The lower the education level obtained, the more often negative feelings are experienced. The experiencing of negative feelings and disease duration are variables that reduce the quality of life of respondents.