What is it about?

We identified factors affecting the HRQoL of outpatients with ulcerative colitis and constructed an HRQoL explanatory model. The explanatory variables that were significantly associated with the IBDQ-32 total score, as an indicator of HRQoL, were the partial Mayo Score of disease activity, presence or absence of treatment side effects, HADS-A score (a measure of anxiety), and availability of an advisor during difficult times. The HADS-A score exerted the strongest direct negative effect on the IBDQ-32 total score.

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Why is it important?

The anxiety and concerns of patients vary between individuals and can change throughout life. Therefore, nurses should consider patients’ concerns, even during the limited time of outpatient visits, and provide information tailored to each patient. Specifically, nurses should listen to the anxiety of individual patients. When a patient has anxiety about relapse, nurses should provide the patient with information on the specific signs of relapse, how to self-monitor them, and guidelines for judgment to see a doctor. Furthermore, physicians need to be aware of relevant resources and collaborate with professionals from other disciplines, such as psychological counselors, to help patients maintain their mental health.

Perspectives

The HADS-A score had the strongest influence on HRQoL, the contribution rate was low, which indicated that the anxiety of patients with ulcerative colitis was affected by factors other than the variables explored in this study. Future work should investigate factors related to anxiety in greater depth to improve the HRQoL of outpatients with ulcerative colitis.

Miho Takahashi
Mukogawa Women's University

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This page is a summary of: Construction of an explanatory model for quality of life in outpatients with ulcerative colitis, Inflammatory Intestinal Diseases, April 2023, Karger Publishers,
DOI: 10.1159/000530455.
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