[Relationship between quality of life and vertebral fracture in older women living in Southern Brazil].

Purpose: To investigate the relationship between quality of life and spinal fracture in women aged over 60 living in Southern Brazil.

Methods: A case-control study was conducted with the application of the WHOQOL-bref questionnaire to 100 women living in the city of Chapecó (SC), aged over 60, postmenopausal, white or Caucasian, with no important cognitive impairment or a history of diseases known to affect bone metabolism, or malignant neoplasias. The population was divided into two groups depending on the presence or absence of fractures in the spine radiography. We analyzed variables related to the current and previous medical history, life habits and family history of fractures, and the domains and facets that compose the WHOQOL-bref. All participants were informed about the objectives and methodologies adopted and gave written informed consent to participate in the study.

Results: The mean age of the women in the fracture group was older than that of women with fractures (p<0.05). Also women with fractures tended to belong to a higher social class, to have more years of study, a higher family income, and a greater use of alcoholic drinks (p<0.05). In the evaluation of the WHOQOL-bref domains, the fracture group had the highest average in the psychological field (χ=63.6±3.0) and the lowest in the environment field (χ=9.3±58.8). In the group without fracture, the highest average also occurred in the psychological domain (χ=67.2±9.3) and the lowest in the field of social relations (χ=57.5±7.7). Statistical analysis showed no significant correlation between the averages of the facets that make up the areas between the groups with and without fractures.

Conclusions: This study suggests that there is no impairment of quality of life among older women with vertebral fractures, but the relation between QL and time of occurrence and severity of the fractures should be better evaluated. Both groups had higher scores in the psychological domain, showing that the respondents rely on personal beliefs, spirituality and religion, accept their physical appearance while maintaining self-esteem and the ability to think, to learn and to concentrate despite the presence of this disease. There was no statistically significant difference between groups or between domains in the same group.