Evidence of reduced health-related quality of life in older Mexican Americans with arthritis

Objective: To examine the association between self-reported physician-diagnosed arthritis and health-related quality of life among older Mexican Americans. Design: Cross-sectional study involving population- based survey. Setting: Hispanic Established Population for the Epidemiologic Study of the Elderly (EPESE) survey conducted in Texas, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, and California. Participants: 839 non-institutionalized Mexican American older adults (≥75 years) participating in Hispanic EPESE. Main Outcome Measures: Self-reported physician- diagnosed arthritis; sociodemographic variables; medical conditions; body mass index; and the physical and mental composite scales from the Medical Outcomes Study Short Form 36 Health Survey (SF-36). Results: 518 (62%) of the subjects reported physician-diagnosed arthritis. Participants with arthritis had significantly lower scores on the physical composite scale (PCS) (mean=35.3, SD=11.3) and the mental composite scale (MCS) (mean=53.5, SD=10.8) of the SF-36 compared to persons without arthritis (PCS mean=42.9, SD=10.9; MCS mean=57.0, SD=8.8). Multiple regression showed that arthritis was associated with decreased PCS and MCS (model estimates of -5.74 [SE=.83]; and -3.16 [SE=.64]), respectively, after controlling for sociodemographic and clinical covariates. Conclusions: Arthritis is a highly prevalent medical condition in Mexican American older adults. Our findings suggest that deficits in both physical health and mental function contribute to reduced quality-of-life in this population.