Objective: To quantify the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) burden of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection among a broad sample of adults in Brazil, particularly among those 40 years of age and older.
Methods: This was a retrospective observational study of data from the 2011 Brazil National Health and Wellness Survey, a large (n = 12 000) cross-sectional survey that includes information on medical conditions and health outcomes, including the Medical Outcomes Study Short-form 12 health questionnaire, version 2 (SF-12v2). Respondents who reported a physician diagnosis of HCV infection were compared with those who reported never experiencing HCV on the Mental (MCS) and Physical (PCS) Component Summary scores and SF-6D health utility scores. Unadjusted comparisons were conducted with chi-square tests for categorical variables and t-tests for continuous variables. Regression was used to adjust outcomes for potential confounds. Subgroup analyses were conducted on those 40 years of age and older.
Results: Unadjusted comparisons between respondents infected with HCV (n = 100) and controls (n = 11 694) revealed similar MCS and PCS scores, but HCV patients had lower SF-6D utility scores (0.70 vs. 0.73, P < 0.05). Regressions adjusting for demographic and health characteristics provided similar results to unadjusted comparisons. Subgroup analyses of respondents 40 years of age and older revealed decrements in both MCS (45.95 vs. 49.72, P < 0.05) and SF-6D (0.71 vs. 0.76, P < 0.05). PCS scores were comparable in HCV patients and controls.
Conclusions: HCV infection in Brazil causes significant HRQoL burden, especially among the older population. Prevention measures to curtail the spread of the virus in Brazil should provide societal benefits in terms of quality of life, in addition to preventing morbidity and mortality from chronic infection.