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Publication Information

PubMed ID
Public Release Type
Journal
Publication Year
2009
Affiliation
New England Research Institutes, Watertown, MA, USA. shall@neriscience.com
Authors
Aiyer LP, Chapple CR, Hall SA, Link CL, Mollon P, Rosen RC, Tennstedt SL, Wein AJ
Studies
Citation
Hall SA, Link CL, Tennstedt SL, Mollon P, Aiyer LP, Chapple CR, Wein AJ, Rosen RC. Urological symptom clusters and health-related quality-of-life: results from the Boston Area Community Health Survey. BJU Int 2009 Jun;103(11):1502-8. Epub 2009 Jan 14.

Abstract

OBJECTIVE To determine whether urological symptom clusters, as identified in previous studies, were associated with health-related quality-of-life (HRQoL) and use of healthcare. SUBJECTS AND METHODS The Boston Area Community Health Survey is a population-based epidemiological study of 2301 male and 3201 female residents of Boston, MA, USA, aged 30-79 years. Baseline data collected from 2002 to 2005 were used in this analysis. Data on 14 urological symptoms were used for the cluster analysis, and five derived symptom clusters among men and four among women were used in multivariate linear regression models (adjusted for age group, race/ethnicity, and comorbidity) to determine their association with physical (PCS-12) and mental health component scores (MCS-12) calculated from the Medical Outcomes Study 12-item Short Form Survey. RESULTS For both men and women, being in the most symptomatic cluster was associated with decrements in the PCS-12 score (men, cluster 5, -10.42; women, cluster 4, -9.80; both P < 0.001) and the MCS-12 score (men, cluster 5, -9.35; women, cluster 4, -6.24; both P < 0.001) compared with the asymptomatic groups. Both men and women in these most symptomatic clusters appeared to have adequate access to healthcare. CONCLUSION For men and women, those with the most urological symptoms reported poorer HRQoL in two domains after adjusting for age and comorbidity, and despite adequate access to care.