ISPUB.COM The Internet Journal of Law, Healthcare and Ethics Volume 6 Number 2 1 of 7 Quality Of Life Of People With Diabetes In Benin City As Measured With WHOQOL- BREF. V Odili, L Ugboka, A Oparah Citation V Odili, L Ugboka, A Oparah. Quality Of Life Of People With Diabetes In Benin City As Measured With WHOQOL- BREF.. The Internet Journal of Law, Healthcare and Ethics. 2008 Volume 6 Number 2. Abstract Purpose: To assess the impact of diabetes on the health-related quality of life of Nigerians. Methods: 112 diabetic patients treated in the University of Benin teaching Hospital (UBTH) and Owen-Jackson Obaseki foundation clinic along with 81 healthy controls without diabetes were recruited. Both groups were given the World Health Organization quality of life questionnaire- short version (WHOQoL-BREF). HRQoLs were acquired to assess quality of life domains that included physical and psychological health, social relationships, and environmental domains. Means, standard deviations, and statical tests for differences were performed.Results: The mean age of patients with diabetes and the control group was 59.0 (range 31-80) and 53.0 (range31-80) respectively. Among the diabetic group 65(58%) were males while 47(42%) were females. Similarly, in the control group there were more males 44(54.3%) than females 37(45.7%). The HRQoL of patients with diabetes was lowest in the social domain. When compared with the control group the HRQoL of patients was lower in all domains except the environment domain (P=0.6478).Conclusion: This study shows diabetes impacts the lives of affected Nigerians in multiple areas and Nigerian physicians must address its social consequences. INTRODUCTION A report produced from the United States revealed that the major causes of death nowadays are chronic diseases [1,2,3]. It is clear that diabetes mellitus is one of the chronic non- communicable diseases that is plaguing both developed and developing countries at an alarming rate. It is projected that the prevalence of diabetes globally will reach 380million by the year 2025 and that developing countries will be a major contributor to this increase [4,5]. Diabetes mellitus was once regarded as a disease of the affluent but is now vastly visible as a growing health problem in developing economies as almost 80% of diabetes deaths occur in low and middle income countries [5], of which Nigeria is one. The National standardized prevalence rate of diabetes mellitus in Nigeria is 2.2%, while the crude prevalence rate is 7.4% in those aged 45 years and above who live in urban areas [6]. Diabetes mellitus is a demanding disease that affects a person’s health- related quality of life, a person’s ability to function and to desire satisfaction from doing so [7,8,9]. People with diabetes are constantly reminded of the disease on a daily basis, they have to eat carefully, exercise, test their blood glucose and based on the result decide when to schedule their next meal or medication. Furthermore, they often have to stop and check for symptoms of hypo or hyperglycaemia as well as deal with the fears of the possibility of complication of the disease. Quality of life (QoL) is of central concern in evaluative research and improved quality of life is probably the most desired outcome of all healthcare policies [10]. Quality of life has been defined as a “descriptive term that refers to people’s emotional, social and physical well being and their ability to function in the ordinary tasks of living” [11]. It could also mean the “degree to which a person enjoys the important possibilities of her/his life” [12], further still, quality of life has been defined as “individuals’ perception of their position in life in the context of the culture and value system in which they live and in relation to their goals, expectations, standards and concerns” [13]. These different definitions of quality of life stem from the multi –disciplinary use of the term. Another reason is the fact that life itself is complex and its importance to every individual is highly subjective. According to Farquahar “there are four main types of definition; global, component, focused, and combinational. The global is the most commonly used in