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Awareness weeks guide

International Quality of Life Month

International Quality of Life Month

International Quality of Life Month is observed in January, focusing on how individuals can improve the quality of their lives. People worldwide are encouraged to examine their current lifestyles and improve their physical, mental, emotional, and social well-being.

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Cochrane Library

Online resources

Articles

Mental health

Physical health

Research

E-books

Journals

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Articles

Mental health

The hidden toll of psychological distress in Australian adults and its impact on health-related quality of life measured as health state utilities
The burden of psychological distress (PD) in Australia is substantial, with a significant impact on female individuals and older individuals. Implementing age-specific and sex-specific healthcare interventions to address PD among Australian adults may greatly alleviate this burden. The PD state-specific health state utilities (HSUs) calculated in our study can serve as valuable inputs for future health economic evaluations of PD in Australia and similar populations. Applied health economics and health policy 26 March 2024

Quality of life impacts associated with comorbid insomnia and depression in adult population
Comorbid depression and insomnia appear to have very large quality-of-life impacts. Furthermore, this is the first study that has estimated the magnitude of the impact of comorbid insomnia and depression on utility scores which can be utilised in future clinical or economic studies. Quality of life research 26 September 2024

Health-related quality of life in individuals with endometriosis and mental health symptoms: a scoping review
Highlights

  • Endometriosis with associated mental health symptoms lowers health-related quality of life.
  • Symptoms of anxiety and depression are associated with a greater number of endometriosis symptoms.
  • Further research is required and should report standardized outcomes that can be meta-analyzed, as well as adjust for confounding factors.

Journal of endometriosis and uterine disorders 13 December 2024

Health-related quality of life of adult and adolescent patients living with alopecia areata in Australia
Alopecia areata (AA) impacts the physical, emotional and psychosocial well-being of both adult and adolescent patients. More extensive hair loss more profoundly impacts those living with AA. Patients may benefit from patient-centred care approaches addressing the impact of hair loss on mental and emotional well-being, daily activities and work productivity. Australasian journal of dermatology 20 May 2024

It’s time for change: inequities and determinants of health-related quality of life among gender and sexually diverse young people in Australia
Evidence-based public health policy responses are required to address the dire health-related quality of life (HR-QoL) inequities among gender and sexuality diverse (LGBTQA2S+) young people, particularly trans young people. Prioritising the promotion of school- and family-based interventions which foster LGBTQA2S+ inclusivity, acceptance, and a sense of belonging from early adolescence through young adulthood, represents a feasible, evidence-based, and cost-effective response to address these HR-QoL disparities. Quality of life research 12 April 2024

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Physical health

Effects of exercise and a lifestyle APP on sleep disordered breathing, physical health, and quality of life
The 12-week exercise program reduced AHI and increased skeletal muscle mass, physical fitness, and health-related quality of life (HRQoL in four domains. The lifestyle app program reduced weight, BMI, neck circumference, body fat, visceral adiposity and skeletal muscle mass while increased three HRQoL domains in participants with mild-to-moderate sleep-disordered breathing (SDB). ERJ 12 December 2024

Effect of Pilates on pain and health-related quality of life in Fibromyalgia patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Pilates may benefit fibromyalgia patients (FMPs). It could reduce pain and improve health-related quality of life (HRQOL). Given the small number of studies and the presence of data heterogeneity, future high-quality RCTs would provide a clearer conclusion. Journal of clinical medicine 6 December 2024

Falls prevention interventions for community-dwelling older adults: systematic review and meta-analysis of benefits, harms, and patient values and preferences
To prevent falls among community-dwelling older adults, evidence is most certain for benefit, at least over 1–2 years, from supervised, long-duration balance/resistance and group Tai Chi interventions, whole-body vibration, high-intensity/dose education or cognitive-behavioral therapy, and interventions of comprehensive multifactorial assessment with targeted treatment plus home-hazard assessment (HHA), HHA plus exercise, or education provided to everyone. Adding other interventions to exercise does not appear to substantially increase benefits. Overall, effects appear most applicable to those with elevated fall risk. Choice among effective interventions that are available may best depend on individual patient preferences, though when implementing new balance/resistance programs delivering individual over group sessions when feasible may be most acceptable. Data on more patient-important outcomes including fall-related fractures and adverse effects would be beneficial, as would studies focusing on equity-deserving populations and on programs delivered virtually. Systematic reviews 26 November 2024

Associations of EAT-Lancet diet food groups with sarcopenia components, self-reported sarcopenia risk and health-related quality of life in older Australians performing exercise training, following their normal diet: Six-month pretest-posttest study
Given the beneficial relationship of whole grains, vegetables and fruits on the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) mental health dimension, and dairy foods, red meats, and fish on the HRQoL relationship dimension, older adults should include them as part of a balanced diet. Further, three participants, who attended the gym less than 20 times since pretest, were detected with sarcopenia probable at posttest. This indicates that attending the gym 1–2 times per week, combined with suitable diet consumption, is the minimum to help prevent sarcopenia. Advanced exercise and health science 29 May 2024

Evaluation of health-related quality of life changes in an Australian rapid access chest pain clinic
Absolute cardiovascular risk counselling in a chest pain clinic yielded clinically meaningful improvement in health-related quality of life. BMC health services research 2 January 2025

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Research

A qualitative systematic review of the impact of hearing on quality of life
Differences in hearing function impact upon people’s health-related quality of life in a variety of ways relating to physical, mental, and social aspects of health, and these themes are clearly demonstrated across qualitative studies. These results will inform the development of hearing-specific questionnaire items for with the EQ-5D descriptive system, a commonly used patient-reported outcome measure. Quality of life research 23 November 2024

Exploring the role of health-related quality of life measures in predictive modelling for oncology: a systematic review
This review aims to describe the current state of oncological prediction models incorporating Health related quality of life (HRQoL). Quality of life research 9 December 2024

The mediating role of depression on the link between physical activity and health-related quality of life among people with diabetes: A cross-sectional study
In individuals with diabetes, depression was found to mediate the effect of PA on health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Therefore, conducting depression screening and managing depressive symptoms in this population is crucial to enhancing HRQoL through PA interventions. Consequently, strategies to enhance HRQoL can be effectively implemented and customized in response to particular depression screening outcomes. Plos one 5 December 2024

Exploring social determinants of health and their impacts on self-reported quality of life in long COVID-19 patients
This study explores the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) experienced by patients with Long COVD-19 using data from British Columbia’s post-COVID-19 Recovery Clinics. The study highlights the multifaceted impacts of Long COVID on the lives of patients and underscores the necessity of targeted strategies to improve HRQoL among diverse groups, considering specific social determinants of health (SDoH). Such a comprehensive approach could lead to more equitable health outcomes and support the development of tailored public health policies aimed at the recovery and rehabilitation of Long COVID sufferers. Scientific reports 6 December 2024

Health-related quality of life and utility of maternity health states amongst post-partum Australians
This study aimed to measure patient-reported health-related quality of life amongst post-partum women in Queensland, Australia. Plos one 7 October 2024

Optimal exercise dose-response improves health-related quality of life in cancer survivors: a systematic review and Bayesian network meta-analysis of RCTs
This study sheds light on the intricate relationship between exercise interventions and health-related quality of life in cancer survivors, as elucidated through a systematic review and Bayesian network meta-analysis. Frontiers in oncology 16 December 2024

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E-books

This is just a sample of the e-books the library subscribes to – you will need your library login

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Journals

This is just a sample of the journals the library subscribes to – you will need your library login

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