Ann Afr Med. 2025 Dec 15. doi: 10.4103/aam.aam_575_25. Online ahead of print.
ABSTRACT
CONTEXT: Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and hypertension are major chronic conditions affecting elderly populations globally, often combined with socioeconomic hardship and comorbidities, which can impair quality of life (QoL).
AIMS: The aim of this study was to assess the health-related QoL among elderly persons with type 2 diabetes and hypertension living in urban slums of Bengaluru and to identify socio-demographic, clinical, lifestyle, and comorbidity factors associated with QoL.
SETTINGS AND DESIGN: A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 255 elderly persons (age ≥60 years) with T2DM and hypertension using probability proportional to size sampling from 12 slums in the field practice area of a tertiary care hospital in Bengaluru, India. Methods and Materials: Data were collected on sociodemographic profile, clinical status, disease duration, comorbidities, lifestyle behaviors, and health-related QoL using domain-specific assessments.
STATISTICAL ANALYSIS USED: Statistical analysis included descriptive statistics, ANOVA/Chi-square tests, and Pearson correlation.
RESULTS: Of 255 participants, the mean age was 67.7 years. Almost half (47.1%) the participants reported poor QoL, predominantly in the social and psychological domains. The mean QoL score among the study subjects is 44.92 ± 7.6, which is below average. The highest score was 47.19 ± 14.6, seen in the physical domain, and the lowest mean scores were observed in social (42.96 ± 16.30) and psychological domains (43.92 ± 10.4).
CONCLUSIONS: The elderly with type 2 diabetes and hypertension in urban slums experience poor QOL influenced by sociodemographic, clinical, and lifestyle factors. Interventions emphasizing physical activity, diet adherence, comorbidity management, and social support are needed.
PMID:41424274 | DOI:10.4103/aam.aam_575_25
