Relationship of treatment satisfaction to health-related quality of life among Palestinian patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus: Findings from a cross-sectional study

• Health-related quality of life (HRQoL) is used in clinical and policy research.
• Treatment satisfaction is used for improving treatment outcomes.
• Satisfaction score was associated with total number of diabetic medications.
• Older age, and presence of comorbid diseases were linked to lower HRQoL.
• Treatment satisfaction is associated with insulin use.

ObjectivesThe aims of the current study were to assess the association between health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and treatment satisfaction in a sample of diabetic patients from Palestine, and to determine the influence of socio-demographic and clinical factors on HRQoL.MethodsIt was a cross-sectional study performed during the period June 2013 to October 2013. The Arabic version of Treatment Satisfaction Questionnaire for Medication (TSQM 1.4) was used to assess treatment satisfaction, and the Arabic version of European Quality of Life scale (EQ-5D-5L) was used to assess HRQoL. Multiple linear regression was used to estimate which variables were the most important related to HRQoL.ResultsA total of 385 diabetic patients were included. There were modest positive correlations between the total score on the Overall Satisfaction domain and EQ-5D-5L (r = 0.14; p = 0.005). After adjusting multiple covariates by multiple linear regression, the association between the Overall Satisfaction and HRQoL was not statistically significant (p = 0.075); (R = 0.495; adjusted R2 = 0.245; F = 10.3; df = 12; p < 0.001). The results showed that elderly patients, being unemployed, and number of comorbid diseases, were significantly associated with HRQoL.ConclusionsOverall, these results indicate that elderly patients, being unemployed, and those with comorbid diseases, are independent risk factors for poor HRQoL. Furthermore, it emerges that HRQoL and treatment satisfaction are both probably influenced by socio-demographic and clinical characteristics. In fact, to improve diabetic patients' quality of life, elderly patients were recommended to receive more attention in their health and economic status.