A Systematic Review of Health-Related Quality-of-Life Measurement in Patients With Complicated Intraabdominal Infections.

BACKGROUND

In this systematic review, we assessed health-related quality-of-life (HRQoL) measures in patients with complicated intraabdominal infections (cIAIs) commonly associated with sepsis and evaluated the impact of cIAIs on HRQoL.

METHODS

Following a prospectively registered protocol in PROSPERO (CRD42021255827), we searched electronic databases, including MEDLINE (PubMed), EMBASE (Elsevier), and CINAHL (EBSCO), from database inception through September 2022 to identify studies that measured HRQoL in patients with cIAIs.

RESULTS

We identified 93 articles that included 45 HRQoL measures: 32 generic, 5 condition-specific, and 8 symptom-specific. Additionally, in 12 studies, researchers developed their own HRQoL questions or questionnaires. The measures evaluated symptom status (30 measures), functioning (39 measures), general health perceptions (8 measures), and overall HRQoL (12 measures). Article results showed that HRQoL in patients with cIAIs improved over time post-treatment and that symptoms, including pain, fatigue, and incontinence, were common. Only the diverticulitis quality-of-life (DV-QoL) instrument had been psychometrically tested in patients with cIAI.

CONCLUSIONS

This review highlights the need for disease-specific HRQoL measures that are rigorously tested and validated in patient populations with cIAIs, which can be informed by the DV-QoL.