Health-related Quality of Life of People from Low-income Families in Hong Kong, China

Abstract

Objectives: To compare the health related quality of life (HRQOL) between adults of low-income families and sex-age matched subjects of the general population in Hong Kong, and to explore factors associated with poor HRQOL in people from low-income families. Methods: A cross sectional health survey on 315 Chinese adults from low-income families was carried out in 2012 in Hong Kong. Each adult answered the Chinese (Hong Kong) SF-12v2 Health Survey and a structured questionnaire on socio-demographic & morbidity characteristics. Mean SF-12v2 domain and summary scores of the subjects were compared with those of age-sex matched subjects randomly selected from a database of 2,764 Chinese adults from the Hong Kong general population (ratio: 1:2), and the difference was tested by independent t-test. Multiple linear regressions were conducted to determine any independent association between low income and HRQOL, and to explore factors associated with poor HRQOL in people from low income families. Results: 298 subjects from low income families who completed the survey reported significantly lower SF-12v2 bodily pain, general health, vitality, physical component summary (PCS) scores than subjects from the general population (N= 596). Extreme low income (< 50% median household income of < US$1282/month) was independently associated with poorer SF-12v2 PCS and mental component summary (MCS) scores after adjustment for sociodemographics and co-morbidities. Amongst subjects from low-income households, extreme low income and younger age were associated with worse SF-12v2 MCS score while known chronic disease was associated with worse SF-12v2 PCS score. Conclusions: Extreme low household income was independently associated with poorer physical and mental health-related HRQOL.