Higher Income and Integration into the Workforce Are the Main Factors Associated with Quality of Life in Acromegalic Patients in Northeastern Brazil.

Objective: To identify the factors associated with quality of life in patients with acromegaly with follow-up at the referral service in neuroendocrinology of the state of Maranhão, northeast Brazil.

Methods: The Acromegaly Quality of Life Questionnaire (Acro-QoL) was used. Factors independently associated with quality of life were identified using multivariate linear regression, with values < 0.05 considered significant.

Results: The multivariate linear regression analysis indicated a positive association between being integrated into the job market and quality of life scores in the overall domain ( = 0.288, = 0.003), psychological domain ( = 0.291, = 0.032), and personal relationship domain ( = 0.314, = 0.019). We also observed a positive association with income and the quality of life scores in all domains as follows: overall domain ( = 0.037, = 0.003), physical domain ( = 0.988, = 0.001), psychological domain ( = 0.342, = 0.008), physical appearance domain ( = 0.270, = 0.049), and personal relationship domain ( = 0.315, = 0.012).

Conclusion: For patients with acromegaly living in one of the least developed regions of Brazil, integration into the job market and a higher income were associated with a better quality of life.