BURDEN BEYOND THE DISEASE: QUALITY OF LIFE ASSESSMENT AMONG TUBERCULOSIS PATIENTS AT MAYO HOSPITAL, LAHORE

Abstract

Background: Tuberculosis symptoms especially loss of weight, loss of appetite, fever, fatigue and body pain can adversely affect the patient’s role in a society. With regard to pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB), the patients usually present themselves with a history of chest symptoms such as cough (productive or non-productive), chest pain and hemoptysis.Objectives: To assess the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) among patients diagnosed with tuberculosis and to identify the physical, psychological, social, and environmental factors influencing their quality of life during treatment.  Method: A descriptive cross sectional study design was conducted at Mayo hospital Lahore, Punjab. Data were collected with help of close ended survey questionnaire regarding assessment of health related quality of life among tuberculosis patient. Data were analyzed with help of SPSS using mean   standard deviation and chi square test with a p less than 0.05. Results: Out of 117 patients 41% of the Tuberculosis were male and 59.0% female. Age distribution revealed that 54.7% were aged between 55 and 65 years. According health-related quality of life among TB patients, revealing that 3.4% had poor quality of life, 69.2% had average quality of life, and 27.4% had good quality of life in Pakistan. Conclusion: The study emphasized the importance of addressing environmental and psychological health factors influencing quality of life. Gender and age emerged as significant demographic factors, with females and individuals over 55 showing poorer quality of life. These findings highlight the need for targeted interventions to improve the well-being of tuberculosis patients.