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Health and Quality of Life Outcomes
Published in: Health and Quality of Life Outcomes 1/2017

Open Access 01-01-2017 | Research

Quality of life in patients with hereditary haemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT)

Authors: Roberto Zarrabeitia, Concepción Fariñas-Álvarez, Miguel Santibáñez, Blanca Señaris, Ana Fontalba, Luisa María Botella, José Antonio Parra

Published in: Health and Quality of Life Outcomes | Issue 1/2017

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Abstract

Background

There are very few studies about general quality of life parameters, standards for the description of health status and comparison with general population data on patients with Hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT), a rare disease in which epistaxis is a cardinal symptom.

Purpose

To assess the quality of life in a population of Spanish patients with HHT and compare it with the general population.

Design and methods

Between January 1st 2005 and December 31st 2013, 187 adult patients diagnosed with HHT who were admitted to the HHT Unit of the Hospital Sierrallana, completed on their first visit, the EuroQol 5D-3L (five dimensions and three levels) quality of life descriptive test and the visual analog scale (VAS). The numerical social index value was also determined and the subjective effect of the nasal epistaxis on their quality of life was estimated classified as mild, moderate or severe.

Results

Patients with HHT had greater problems than the general population in the five dimensions of the EuroQol 5D-3L, particularly considering pain/discomfort and anxiety/depression. In the VAS and the social index value, patients with HHT also scored lower than the general population, particularly older patients, males, and patients with HHT2. They also had values similar to those of populations with chronic illnesses. The subjective perception of the severity of epistaxis correlated strongly with the VAS and social index values.

Conclusions

The quality of life of patients with HHT, estimated using the EuroQol 5D-3L scale, is affected across all dimensions. The scores are similar to those seen in cases of other chronic diseases. Older patients, males and the carriers of the ACVRL1 mutation generally have worse scores on these scales. The VAS and the social index value are index that correlate well with the severity of the clinical symptoms associated mainly with epistaxis.
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Metadata
Title
Quality of life in patients with hereditary haemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT)
Authors
Roberto Zarrabeitia
Concepción Fariñas-Álvarez
Miguel Santibáñez
Blanca Señaris
Ana Fontalba
Luisa María Botella
José Antonio Parra
Publication date
01-01-2017
Publisher
BioMed Central
Published in
Health and Quality of Life Outcomes / Issue 1/2017
Electronic ISSN: 1477-7525
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12955-017-0586-z

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