Quality of life in dyspepsia and its subgroups using EQ-5D (EuroQol) questionnaire

Dyspepsia has a significant impact on the quality of life. Health-related quality of life (HRQoL) can be assessed by disease-specific and generic HRQoL instruments. The present study evaluated HRQoL and compared it among dyspepsia subgroups by using EQ (Euro QoL)-5D questionnaire.

Patients with abnormal findings on upper gastrointestinal endoscopy were classified to have organic dyspepsia, whereas those with normal endoscopy were classified as functional dyspepsia if they met the ROME III criteria or as endoscopy negative recent dyspepsia if symptom duration was <6 months. HRQoL was assessed using the EQ-5D questionnaire, and the overall health status on a visual analogue scale (VAS); and the frequency of impairment in each dimension were compared between the dyspepsia subgroups.

The overall health status was affected equally in all three dyspepsia subgroups. Impairment in HRQoL was commonly seen in the dimensions of pain (98.4%), usual activities (66.20%), and anxiety/depression (70.60%), however, much less so in mobility (22.70%) and self-care (10.9%). Any impairment in HRQoL was not significantly different between the three subgroups in the dimensions of mobility and usual activities. Self-care was more commonly affected in organic dyspepsia, anxiety/depression was more common with functional dyspepsia, while pain, though significantly different among various subgroups, was very common in all three subgroups.

HRQoL was equally affected in all three subgroups of dyspepsia but variably so in the different domains of EQ-5D. These differences need to be studied further to improve the management of different etiological subgroups of dyspepsia.