Is health-related quality of life improving after stroke? A comparison of health utilities indices among Canadians with stroke between 1996 and 2005.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Recent innovations in diagnosis, management, and rehabilitation have resulted in measurable improvements in clinical and functional outcomes after acute stroke. However, whether gains in health-related quality of life after stroke have also occurred is not well characterized. Using 2 Canadian population surveys, the purpose of this study was to identify changes in health-related quality of life in individuals with stroke from 1996 to 2005. METHODS Data from the public use files of the National Population Health Survey, Cycle 2 (1996), and the Canadian Community Health Survey, Cycle 3.1. (2005), were used. A total of 847 individuals with stroke were included. Self-reported information on health status based on the Health Utilities Index Mark 3 was used to generate single-attribute and overall health-related quality of life scores. Analysis of covariance and multiple logistic regression were used to determine the relationship between survey year and poststroke impairment adjusting for demographic variables and clinical comorbidities. RESULTS A statistically significant and clinically important reduction in mean overall Health Utilities Index Mark 3 scores was observed for respondents with stroke from 1996 to 2005. In addition, 2 of the 8 single-attribute Health Utilities Index Mark 3 domains showed a significant change between survey years. Significantly more individuals with stroke reported dexterity and cognitive impairment in 2005 compared with respondents in 1996, indicating reduced health-related quality of life for these domains. CONCLUSIONS Despite improvements in medical management, quality of life is not improving after stroke in the Canadian population. These findings are useful to generate hypotheses about the impact of advances in management on quality of life after stroke and identify specific domains that may benefit from future study in stroke populations.