Abstract
Background: Post hepatitis C virus chronic liver disease (CLD) is prevalent among the Egyptian
population with a bad impact upon their quality of life (QOL). Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is
one of the long term and fatal complications of CLD and it also has its negative impact on patient’s
quality of life. Aim: To assess impact of CLD and HCC on the quality of life of group of hospitalized
elderly patients. Methodology: Ninety elderly patients were divided into three groups: 30 elderly
with post hepatitis C virus CLD, 30 elderly with HCC and 30 others free of liver disease as control
group (Cn), all were recruited from the in-patient ward and the outpatient clinic of the Geriatric
Department, Ain-Shams University Hospital. After giving consent, comprehensive geriatric assessment
was done with assessment of their quality of life by using the Short Form-36 health survey
(SF-36). Investigations including liver enzymes, serum albumin, serum bilirubin and abdominal
ultrasound were done. Results: All QOL domains were the highest among control group, followed
by HCC group and the least among CLD group. The differences were statistically significant
in most subscales and total score [Mean of Cn = 81.9 ± 12.4, Mean of CLD = 47.5 ± 21.9, Mean of HCC
= 62.3 ± 16.1; P Cn/CLD ≤ 0.001, P Cn/HCC ≤ 0.001, P CLD/HCC = 0.004]. Albumin was the only biochemical
marker correlated positively with total SF score and two subscales (PF and EF) [r = 0.408;
*Corresponding author.
S. M. Ebeid et al.
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Keywords
Post Hepatitis C Virus Chronic Liver Diseases, Hepatocellular Carcinoma, Quality of Life, Short
Form-36 Health Survey
1. Introduction
In 1947, the World Health Organization expanded the definition of health to include not only the absence of
disease but also a complete state of physical, mental, and social well-being [1]-[3]. So it is important to know
and assess the impact of disease on patient’s P = 0.025]. Conclusion & Recommendation: Our study showed a decrease in the QOL of Egyptian
post hepatitis C virus CLD and HCC patients compared with Egyptian population norms. The results
showed that CLD were more affected than HCC patients. This had a particularly serious negative
impact on their life. The findings indicate a need for updated counseling and educational materials
designed to provide adequate information and consistent healthcare service to this patient
setting.
health, society and on biomedical, physiological and socioeconomic
outcomes. Quality of Life (QOL) has now attained important status in clinical patient management. The importance
of impact of healthcare interventions on patient’s everyday life is increasingly recognized rather than
on patient’s health alone [4].
The Short Form-36 (SF-36) health survey is a generic health status measurement consisting of 36 items in
eight domains, which has demonstrated good reliability and validity in chronic disease populations, including
patients with chronic liver diseases [5]-[8].
Viral liver diseases are common endemic diseases in Egypt. Both chronic liver diseases with or without cirrhosis
are complications of viral liver diseases. Among patients with chronic liver disease, impairment in QOL
has been reported [5]-[11]. Studies of chronic liver disease have consistently shown that QOL is significantly
poorer in both cirrhotic and non-cirrhotic patients than healthy controls [12].
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most common primary liver cancer. It is the 5th most common cancer
worldwide and the 3rd leading cause of cancer-related deaths [13] [14] and one of the major sequelae of chronic
liver diseases. It is now increasing worldwide [15] [16] and the QOL of patients with HCC is an area of interest
[17]-[19].
Given the time course of the disease and the burden of treatment, there are increasing concerns about healthrelated
quality of life (HRQOL) associated with liver diseases and HCC [20]; therefore the aim of this study is to
assess the impact of post hepatitis C virus chronic liver disease and HCC on quality of life of hospitalized elderly
patients.
2. Patients and Methods
2.1. Ethics
This study had the approval of the ethics committee of the Ain Shams Faculty of Medicine. All subjects consented
to participate in the study.
2.2. Study Design
Case control study.
2.3. Patient Selection
Ninety elderly patients were recruited from the in-patient ward, of the Geriatric Department, Ain Shams University
Hospital, and they were divided into three groups:
Group 1: Thirty elderly patients free of hepatic diseases, they were considered as the control group (Cn).
Group 2: Thirty elderly patients with diagnosis of post hepatitis C virus chronic liver disease (CLD). The diagnosis
of chronic viral hepatitis C was based on a positive hepatitis C antibody (ELISA II analysis), with or
without HCV RNA as detected by polymerase chain reaction [21]. No antiviral treatment was received.
Group 3: Thirty elderly patients with diagnosis of HCC on top of post hepatitis C virus chronic liver disease,
according to the American Association for the Study of Liver Disease criteria [22] were informed of the diagnosis.
None of the patients were actively receiving treatments for the CLD or HCC.
Patients with active bleeding, bacterial infection, or other acute events were studied after the complete resolution
of the intervening complication. Patients with overt encephalopathy were excluded to prevent incorrect fillS.
M. Ebeid et al.
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ing of questionnaires. Patients with significant uncontrolled disorders, such as non-hepatic organ failure and depression,
which can affect quality of life, were also excluded.
2.4. Data Collection
At admission, each patient gave informed consent and then extensive demographic and clinical data were also
collected at this time. Patients’ baseline characteristics, including age, gender, and marital statuses were collected.
Laboratory data including alanine and aspartate aminotransferases, total bilirubin and serum albumin
were collected.
2.5. QOL Survey
Short Form-36 health survey (SF-36) is composed of 36 questions, each of which was categorized into one of
the eight domains: physical functioning (PF), bodily pain (P), role limitations due to physical health problems
(RLPH), role limitations due to personal or emotional problems (RLEP), emotional well-being (EW), social
functioning (SF), energy/fatigue (EF), and general health perceptions (GH). It also includes a single item that
provides an indication of perceived change in health. These 36 items, presented here, are identical to the MOS
SF-36 described before [23]. They were adapted from longer instruments completed by patients participating in
the Medical Outcomes Study (MOS), an observational study of variation in physician practice styles and patient
outcomes in different systems of health care delivery [24] [25].
Participants completed the self-administered QOL questionnaire: Short Form36 (SF-36 v2 Arabic version), a
widely used and validated generic HRQOL questionnaire. We used the Arabic version of SF-36, which was
translated by Al Abdulmohsin [26] whose results provide support for the reliability and equivalence of both the
Arabic and English versions. This Arabic version is referred to as RAND 36-item health survey 1.0. The SF-36
was administered by self-administration or face-to-face interviews (for illiterate persons or those with other difficulties).
Generic measures provide comparisons between general populations and patients with chronic conditions,
whereas disease-specific measures assess disease-specific symptoms and can capture patients’ experiences
throughout the course of a disease and its treatment [27]. The Short Form-36 Questionnaire (SF-36) is one tool
commonly used as a generic measure to assess HRQOL.
2.6. Statistical Methods
The collected data were coded, tabulated, and statistically analyzed using IBM SPSS statistics (Statistical Package
for Social Sciences) software version 22.0, IBM Corp., Chicago, USA, 2013. Descriptive statistics were
done for quantitative data as mean ± SD (standard deviation) and minimum & maximum of the range for quantitative
parametric data, while it was done for qualitative data as number and percentage. Inferential analyses
were done for quantitative variables using independent t-test in cases of two independent groups with parametric
data. In qualitative data, inferential analyses for independent variables were done using Chi square test for differences
between proportions. The level of significance is taken at P value < 0.05 is significant, otherwise is
non-significant.
3. Results
3.1. Demographic Data
The characteristics of the study population are summarized (Table 1). The study groups were matched for age
and sex. The population consisted of 51 (56%) males and 39 (44%) females, and the age of patients ranged from
60 to 90 years old (median 65). Mean duration of CLD was 12 ± 7.5 years (mean ± SD; range, 5 - 20years),
while mean duration of HCC was 13.1 ± 11.9 months (mean ± SD; range, 3 - 36 months). Co-morbidities like
hypertension (HTN), ischemic heart disease (ISHD), old stroke and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
(COPD) were significantly prevalent in both CLD and HCC groups.
3.2. QoL Domains
As regard comparison between study groups regarding QOL domains shows that all QOL domains were highest
among control group, followed by HCC group and least among CLD group. The differences were statistically
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significant in most subscales and total score (Table 2 and Figure 1).
Table 1. Comparison between study groups regarding demographic characteristics, co-morbidities and laboratory findings.
Variable Measure Control
(N = 30)
CLD
(N = 30)
HCC
(N = 30) P Cn/CLD P Cn/HCC P CLD/HCC
Age (years)
Mean ± SD 64.3 ± 3.9 64.9 ± 5.1 66.1 ± 5.9
0.594# 0.161# 0.404#
Range 60.0 - 74.0 60.0 - 80.0 60.0-90.0
Sex
Male 15 (50.0%) 19 (63.3%) 17 (56.7%)
0.297^ 0.605^ 0.598^
Female 15 (50.0%) 11 (26.7%) 13 (43.3%)
Marital
Married 20 (