Affiliations 

  • 1 Center for Population Health, Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, 50603 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
  • 2 Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Faculty of Medicine Building, University of Malaya, 50603 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
  • 3 SEACO/School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Monash University Malaysia, 146 Jalan Sia Her Yam, Segamat District, 85000 Jahor State, Malaysia
Biomed Res Int, 2014;2014:350281.
PMID: 24982864 DOI: 10.1155/2014/350281

Abstract

This study aims to identify the predictors in the different aspects of the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and to measure the changes of functional status over time in a cohort of Nigerian stroke survivors. A prospective observational study was conducted in three hospitals of Kano state of Nigeria where stroke survivors receive rehabilitation. The linguistic-validated Hausa versions of the stroke impact scale 3.0, modified Rankin scale, Barthel index and Beck depression inventory scales were used. Paired samples t-test was used to calculate the amount of changes that occur over time and the forward stepwise linear regression model was used to identify the predictors. A total of 233 stroke survivors were surveyed at 6 months, and 93% (217/233) were followed at 1 year after stroke. Functional disabilities were significantly reduced during the recovery phase. Motor impairment, disability, and level of depression were independent predictors of HRQoL in the multivariate regression analysis. The involvement of family members as caregivers is the key factor for those survivors with improved functional status. Thus, to enhance the quality of poststroke life, it is proposed that a holistic stroke rehabilitation service and an active involvement of family members are established at every possible level.

* Title and MeSH Headings from MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.