Quality of life in patients with asthma: Medical indicators and psychological variables

• Published in: Journal of pediatric nursing 2023-03, Vol.69, p.e136-e144
• Main Authors: Valero-Moreno, Selene, Montoya-Castilla, Inmaculada, Pérez-Marín, Marián
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adolescence; Adolescent; Asthma; Asthma - diagnosis; Asthma - psychology; Asthma - therapy; Child; Cross-Sectional Studies; Emotions; Female; Health status indicators; Humans; Psychology; Quality of life; Quality of Life - psychology; Surveys and Questionnaires
• ISSN: 0882-5963; 1532-8449
• DOI: 10.1016/j.pedn.2022.12.030

Quality of life (QoL) is a widely studied term concerning asthma because it allows the impact of the disease on the patient's life to be assessed through the patient's perception. The study aims to analyze which asthma-related, psychological, and family variables affect the QoL of adolescents with asthma. This cross-sectional design involves 150 patients diagnosed with asthma aged between 12 and 16 years. The patients' emotional symptomatology, the threat of illness, self-esteem, bonds, quality of life, family, and disease variables were assessed. Statistical analyses were performed using QCA models. The results indicate that girls have a poorer QoL, and age is negatively associated. QCA models found that the variables that best explained the quality of life of these patients, in the case of the medical indicators, were control, good compliance, shorter diagnosis times, and improvement. Regarding psychological variables: a lower threat of illness, less emotional distress, and better parental mood explained the high QoL. Adolescent QoL is affected by variables related to their asthma that are beyond their control and other psychological and family variables that may increase the perception of their QoL. •The perception of quality of life in asthma is associated with variables such as control and adherence to treatment.•Perception of quality of life is related to perceived threat of disease, better mental health, and healthy family styles. • Jointly assessing psychological variables and medical indicators is necessary for the improvement of quality of life.