Quality of Life and Functioning in Physically Disabled Rheumatic Adolescents

Abstract

Physical disability brings a substantial change in a person's life (Jornt et al, 2010); Compelling evidence shows that growing disabled frequently leads to an expansion in psychological distress. (Choi & Marks, 2008).one of the causes of physical disability is rheumatological disorders. Adolescence can be a time when rheumatological conditions present to the general practitioner for diagnosis and management. It is believed that functioning affects the quality of life of individuals in the way that better functioning leads to better quality of life. AIM OF THE STUDY To assess quality of life and correlation between quality of life and functioning in adolescents with physical disability as a result of rheumatic diseases. METHOD The study was conducted in the period between 11\2015 and 12\2017. Number of patients within the age range from 9 to 19 years old and meeting the inclusion criteria of the study were 78 patients with different rheumatic diseases causing physical disability. Functioning was assessed using the Health Assessment Questionnaire while Quality of life was assessed using WHO Quality of Life assessment.