Supervisors info:
Κυριακή Μυστακίδου, Καθηγήτρια, Ιατρική Σχολή, ΕΚΠΑ
Κουλουλίας Βασίλης, Αναπληρωτής Καθηγητής, Ιατρικής Σχολής,ΕΚΠΑ
Κατσαραγάκης Στέλιος, Λέκτορας, Νοσηλευτικής Σχολής, Πανεπιστημίου Πελοποννήσου
Summary:
Hansen's disease is one of the most significant infectious diseases worldwide, responsible for the appearance of severe deformities and disabilities, as it primarily affects the skin and the peripheral nerves, secondarily the eyes, the mucous membranes, the bones and the testicles, resulting in a range of clinical Phenotypes. The disease is caused by the Mycobacterium leprae which was identified in 1883 by the Norwegian physician Gerhard Henrik Armauer Hansen. Despite the existence of effective treatment, the disease’s incidence, is significantly reduced, but not eliminated. According to the World Health Organization, there are approximately 250,000 new incidents per year, especially in developing countries. It remains endemic in many countries of the world, particularly in populations with a low socio-economic level. The approval and widespread use of a multi-drug therapy since 1982 has contributed to a drastic reduction in the number of patients. Greece is one of many countries with very low endemicity rates and the detection rate of the disease is well below 1: 100,000.
According to international references, there are certain factors that affect negatively the quality of life of patients, even affecting the healing of the disease. Respective research studies in Greece have not been found.
The purpose of this research is the investigation and correlation of quantitative and categorical variables in terms of quality of life, loneliness and cognitive decline of patients suffering from Hansen's disease in Greece. The data were collected through the SF-36 (health survey) questionnaire, the UCLA Loneliness Scale questionnaire and the MMSE (Mini Mental Scale Examination). The population of this study included patients, who had been in the past diagnosed with Hansen's disease and who now live in the former Center for Social Rehabilitation of the Center of Social Welfare of the Region of Attica, which is the only of it’s kind in Greece. The initial sample of the study included 17 Hansen-treated patients, 4 of which were excluded (3 were diagnosed with dementia and 1 refused to participate in the research). The final sample was 13 individuals. The number of the sample used in this study may seem small to conclude to statistically significant results. However, the uniqueness of the sample concerning the disease’s incidence in Greece should be highlighted, since they are the last and only "opt-in" surviving patients who have been living in the Center of Social Welfare for more than 60 years, transported either before or after the abolition of patients with leprosy in Greece In 1957.
The analysis of the results found that the main factors that had a significant impact on the quality of life and the degree of loneliness of the particular research sample were the early diagnosis of the disease, the age of diagnosis and the duration of treatment. In particular, the duration of treatment significantly affected Physical Functionality, General Health, Social Role, Mental Health, and the Social Loneliness of Patients. As far as the age of diagnosis is concerned, according to the date it affects Physical Functionality, Social Loneliness, Mental Health and Mental Loneliness. The sex and educational level of the patients did not appear to have affected the indicators, while the existence of children and family reduced the feeling of loneliness and strengthened the patients’ social role.
Keywords:
Leprosy, Hansen's disease, Quality of life, Loneliness
