Impaired Health-Related Quality of Life in Inflammatory Bowel Diseases Psychosocial Impact and Coping Styles in a National German Sample

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study is to give a detailed survey of the disease-specific and generic quality of life (HRQOL) of adult patients suffering from inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) in Germany. METHODS: 1322 patients suffering from IBD were examined in a cross-sectional study. A questionnaire assessing disease-specific and generic quality of life, coping, and hopelessness was sent to members of the German Crohn/Colitis association. RESULTS: Compared to the general population, the generic HRQOL in IBD patients is significantly reduced. Active coping has a negative influence on patients' generic physical HRQOL during an active phase (beta = -0.31), while this association is not present in the case of patients in remission (beta = -0.02, interaction: P = 0.0003). Depressive coping is strongly and negatively associated with assessment of the physical (beta = -0.39, P < 0.0001) and mental (beta = -0.66, P < 0.0001) HRQOL. Disease-specific burdens are mainly reported in the physical dimension. CONCLUSION: The pattern of psychosocial impact of disease in German IBD patients is largely congruent with the one observed in the USA and Canada, but shows some specific differences. The a priori unexpected finding that active coping was associated with poor HRQOL in active IBD status illustrates the importance of considering different determinants of HRQOL in terms of their mutual interaction.