Life satisfaction in younger individuals after stroke: different predisposing factors among men and women

To describe self-reported life satisfaction of younger persons after stroke and to investigate differences between men and women and factors associated with life satisfaction.

A cross-sectional study.

Subjects were all persons after stroke, aged 18-55 years, registered in the Swedish National Quality Register for Stroke Care. A questionnaire was completed by 1068 individuals 8-36 months after stroke. Perceived Life Satisfaction was measured with LiSat-9.

Less than half of the participants were satisfied with life as a whole. For women, significant associations were found between not being satisfied with life as a whole and haemorrhage (odds ratio (OR) 4.00) as well as a deteriorated ability to concentrate (OR 2.11). For men, significant associations were found to be not having a significant other (OR 3.17), not working (OR 2.26) and deteriorated ability to concentrate (OR 2.04).

There were different factors for being satisfied with life as a whole between men and women, indicating a need for a more gender-specific rehabilitation than is currently used. The impact that deteriorated ability to concentrate has on life satisfaction is an important finding that needs to be considered in the rehabilitation process of younger patients after stroke.