QUALITY OF LIFE OF PEOPLE AFFECTED BY LEPROSY IN SELFCARE SUPPORT GROUPS

Abstract

Objective: To analyze the quality of life of people affected by leprosy in self-care support groups. Method: A quantitative and descriptive study conducted with 43 participants in reference units with self-care support groups for people affected by leprosy in Recife and its Metropolitan Area. Data collection took place between January and July 2018 with the application of the WHOQOL-BREF instrument to assess quality of life. The distribution of the continuous numerical variables was analyzed by the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test; the categorical variables were presented by absolute and relative (%) frequency. Results: The overall quality of life score was 56.4 and the domain scores were average, ranging between 50 and 60. The domains with the lowest scores were found to be the physical and environmental relationship domains Conclusion: People affected by leprosy have a decreased quality of life. Although curable, it is a public health problem and requires attention for control and elimination.

Keywords

• quality of life
• leprosy
• self-care
• education
• mycobacterium leprae