[Symptoms and impact on quality of life of patients with Ménière's disease].

Objective

To explore the symptoms of Ménière's disease patients and their impact on quality of life.

Methods

A cross-sectional study was conducted, consecutively enrolling patients of Ménière's disease who visited the Otolaryngology Clinic at the Eye & ENT Hospital of Fudan University from October 2014 to December 2022. The Chinese version of the Ménière's Disease Outcomes Questionnaire (MDOQ) and a Ménière's disease-specific symptom checklist were utilized for assessment. SPSS 25.0 software was employed to perform multiple linear regression analysis to determine the impact of Ménière's disease symptoms on patients' quality of life.

Results

A total of 790 patients with a definitive diagnosis of Ménière's disease who met the inclusion and exclusion criteria were analyzed. The cohort comprised 418 males and 372 females, with a mean age of (54.8±13.1) years and a diagnosis duration ranging from 0 to 72 months, with a median of 3 months. The total score of the Chinese MDOQ was 61.0±12.0. The symptomatic presentations of the enrolled patients included hearing changes, tinnitus, aural fullness, drop attacks, vertigo episodes, visual instability, dizziness, and headache. Multiple linear regression analysis revealed that age, tinnitus, aural fullness, frequency of drop attacks, visual instability, dizziness, and headache were significant factors affecting the quality of life in Ménière's disease patients (F=145.50, P<0.05).

Conclusions

The quality of life in Ménière's disease patients requires improvement. Attention to the specific symptoms of Ménière's disease and their impact on patients' quality of life, along with targeted symptom interventions based on these findings, will be a focal point in future disease management.