María del Carmen Sáenz González

Calidad de vida relacionada con la salud en personas con discapacidad intelectual en España

OBJETIVO: Establecer la calidad de vida relacionada con la salud (CVRS) percibida por las personas con discapacidad intelectual en la provincia de Salamanca, Espana. METODOS: Estudio descriptivo transversal de base poblacional. Se aplico el cuestionario de salud SF-36, adaptado y validado para la poblacion espanola, a 265 personas con discapacidad intelectual de la provincia de Salamanca, Espana. Se realizaron entrevistas personales a los participantes en presencia de sus padres, tutores o familiares cercanos. Se exploraron ocho dimensiones de la calidad de vida: salud general, funcion fisica, rol fisico, rol emocional, funcion social, dolor corporal, vitalidad y salud mental a partir de variables sociodemograficas y de estilo de vida, utilizacion de servicios de salud, necesidades de apoyo, y estado de salud y CVRS. RESULTADOS: De las 265 personas estudiadas, 69,8% eran hombres y 30,2% eran mujeres (edad media: 35 anos; minima: 16; maxima: 72). Las puntuaciones maximas obtenidas correspondieron a las dimensiones rol fisico y funcion fisica (por encima de 85 puntos) y las minimas, a salud general y vitalidad (por debajo de 70 puntos). No se observaron diferencias significativas entre los hombres y las mujeres en ninguna de las ocho dimensiones. Las variables independientes edad, ingresos familiares, nivel educacional y necesidad de apoyo presentaron la mayor cantidad de asociaciones independientes con las dimensiones salud general, funcion fisica y funcion social. De los participantes, 41,5% manifesto que su salud percibida era buena. CONCLUSIONES: Los participantes en este estudio percibieron su CVRS como buena, especialmente en las dimensiones rol fisico y funcion fisica. Se deben disenar estudios para evaluar la CVRS en personas con diferentes grados de discapacidad intelectual para contribuir a elaborar intervenciones y programas sanitarios y sociales especificos para esta poblacion y para evaluar las intervenciones y los programas en marcha.OBJECTIVE To measure health-related quality-of-life (HRQL) among people with intellectual disabilities in the province of Salamanca, Spain. METHODS A population-based, cross-sectional descriptive study. The SF-36 Health Survey, adapted and validated for the Spanish population, was selected and administered to 265 people with intellectual disabilities in the province of Salamanca, Spain. Personal interviews were also conducted with the participants in the presence of their parents, tutors, or close family. Eight quality-of-life scales were explored: general health, physical functioning, role-physical, bodily pain, role-emotional, social functioning, vitality, and mental health, based on questions on sociodemographic and lifestyle variables, health services utilization, support needs, and health status and HRQL. RESULTS Of the 265 people studied, 69.8% were men and 30.2% were women (median age: 35 years; minimum: 16; maximum: 72). The highest number of points pertained to role-physical and physical functioning (more than 85 points), and the lowest, to general health and vitality (less than 70 points). No significant differences were found between men and women for any of the eight components. The independent variables, age, family income, level of education, and support needs showed the greatest number of independent associations with the general health, physical functioning, and social functioning components. Of the participants, 41.5% indicated that they felt their health was good. CONCLUSIONS The study participants perceived their HRQL to be good, especially on the role-physical and physical functioning scales. Additional studies should be designed to evaluate HRQL in people with different degrees of intellectual disability to further contribute to intervention efforts and health and social programs designed specifically for this population group and to evaluate the interventions and program already underway.

Mortalidad prematura por enfermedades infecciosas en España, 1908-1995

OBJECTIVES Infectious diseases have traditionally been one of the leading causes of death in developed countries. The objectives of this research were to: 1) quantify the importance of infectious diseases as a cause of premature mortality in Spain between 1908 and 1995, and 2) determine the frequency and distribution of the infectious diseases with the greatest impact on premature death. METHODS The study was carried out based on data on mortality from infectious causes published by the National Institute of Statistics in the Movimiento natural de la población (Natural Movement of the Population) for the study period. Three indicators of premature mortality were used: the potential years of life lost (PYLL), the crude rate of PYLL per 1 000 population, and the percentage and the average of PYLL. RESULTS Between 1908 and 1995, the number and the rate of PYLL from infectious causes clearly declined. The decrease was more prominent starting in the 1950s, and it was seen in all age groups. Tuberculosis was the leading cause of premature death from the beginning of the century until the 1970s, but after that, the leading causes became pneumonia and AIDS. CONCLUSIONS The impact of infectious diseases as determinants of premature death in Spain declined during the 20th century, especially starting in the 1970s.