Research finds: These factors cannot be ignored to improve the quality of life of leprosy patients

Leprosy is an ancient disease, and together with tuberculosis and syphilis, it is known as one of the three major chronic infectious diseases. In order to eliminate the harm of leprosy as soon as possible, in addition to learning the symptoms of leprosy, we should also pay more attention to the quality of life of leprosy patients. In order to improve the quality of life of patients, we must first understand what factors affect this problem.

In 2013, an article titled "Research Progress on Factors Affecting the Quality of Life of Leprosy Patients" was published in the Zhejiang Preventive Medicine Journal, which elaborated on four factors that affect leprosy: individual physiological factors, leprosy-related factors, psychological factors and external environmental factors.

From the perspective of individual physiological factors, the main factors affecting the quality of life of leprosy patients include gender, age, educational level and physical health status.

Most studies show that there are gender differences in the quality of life of leprosy patients, but the specific dimensions vary from study to study. For example, a Brazilian study showed that leprosy has a greater impact on the quality of life of women, but a study in India showed that male leprosy patients had lower quality of life scores in physical and environmental dimensions than the control group.

In terms of age, a study from Gansu, China, showed that the older people are, the lower their quality of life is, especially for those over 60 years old. This is easy to understand, mainly because the physiological function decreases with age and the prevalence of chronic diseases increases.

In terms of education level, a study on 189 leprosy patients in Bangladesh showed that patients with low education levels often have poor quality of life, which has become a risk factor for the deterioration of the quality of life of leprosy patients. Therefore, strengthening the education of patients is also one of the important means to improve their quality of life.

In addition, a study from Shandong showed that the prevalence of common diseases and chronic diseases among leprosy patients is higher than that of normal people, and these chronic diseases, together with the sequelae of leprosy, restrict the daily life of patients, reduce their ability to take care of themselves, and seriously affect their quality of life. This means that leprosy patients with chronic diseases should receive more attention and care.

In addition to individual factors, leprosy-related factors cannot be ignored. Several studies have found that the type of leprosy, degree of leprosy, leprosy reaction and degree of disability all affect the quality of life of patients to varying degrees.

Of course, the quality of life of patients is also affected by their psychological condition. Personality is a person's overall mental outlook. A positive attitude often leads to a higher quality of life, and vice versa. Therefore, timely guidance of patients and guiding them to face it optimistically is also one of the important factors to improve their quality of life.

Finally, there are external environmental factors that must be mentioned. A study in China showed that although the scores of leprosy patients in Gansu were close to those in Zhejiang in terms of physiological function, vitality, and bodily pain, the scores in other dimensions were lower than those of cured leprosy patients in Zhejiang. Researchers believe that this may be related to the different economic conditions and living conditions of residents in the two provinces. This may mean that financial assistance may be a very important way to promote the recovery of patients and improve their quality of life.

Although there are many studies on the quality of life of leprosy patients, it is certain that there is no single factor that affects this problem. Only by conducting comprehensive interventions on patients can better results be achieved.

References:

Wang Jingquan, Tan Youji (review), Zhang Guocheng, et al. Research progress on quality of life assessment of leprosy patients[J]. Zhejiang Preventive Medicine, 2013.