A Comparison of Quality of Life in Elderly Patients with Intermittent Claudication and Chronic Limb-Threatening Ischemia

Abstract Introduction Intermittent claudication (IC) and chronic limb-threatening ischemia (CLTI) are both associated with a decreased health status (HS), and possibly quality of life (QOL). A better understanding of the differences in QOL between patients with IC and CLTI could be of additional value in shared decision making. The aim of this study was to compare the QOL at baseline between patients with IC and patients with CLTI. Material and Methods The study population was based on two study cohorts, one cohort consisted of patients with IC (ELECT registry), the other cohort of patients with CLTI (KOP-study). Patients with an age of ≥70 years were included. QOL at baseline was measured by the WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire. Non-responders were excluded from data analyses. Student’s T-tests and Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) analyses were used to compare QOL between the two groups. Outcomes of the ANCOVA analyses were expressed as estimated marginal means. Results In total 308 patients were included, 115 patients with IC and 193 patients with CLTI. Patients with CLTI were older (median age 80 years vs. 75 years, p Conclusion Patients with IC had a significantly higher QOL in the physical, psychological, environment and overall domains of the WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire compared to patients with CLTI. This underlines the importance of strategies that reduce disease progression as disease progression is associated with a decrease in QOL.