Assessment of quality of life for hypertensive patients: Integrative review for Potential of Novel Assessment Tools of quality of life

Background & Aim: The body of literature on QoL has steadily grown over recent years, spurred by the promotion of research and the cross-cultural adaptation and validation of assessment instruments in different languages. However, limited information exists on the most commonly used instruments against the backdrop of current demographic and epidemiological trends. The aim this study to evaluate QoL assessment instruments used in hypertensive patients. Methods & Materials: This review was conducted using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) statement. Databases used including Sciencedirect, Cochrane library, Pubmed, Proquest, and the Wiley Online Library, utilizing keywords that are tailored to the Mesh Terms. Systolic Blood Pressure (SBP) value at least 140 mmHg and/or Diastolic Blood Pressure (DBP) value at least 90 mmHg, or the patient had a history of hypertension and was administered with antihypertensive drugs, English version, observational studies that presented Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) scores in hypertensive individuals using varied assessment tools (WHOQoL BREF, SF-36, MINICHAL, etc) where these tools assess the situation of the patient's quality of life based on the domain of life (physiological, psychological, social interaction, etc.) in the form of numbers, and published between January 2000 to December 2021 were inclusion criteria of the study. Relevant studies were read critically, analyzed, and described in detail. Survey data were processed in the form of comparative tables. Results: A total of 2,287,348 references were found through databases, and for the final screening, twenty-two articles were finally designated as articles to be reviewed. The SF-36 (SF-8, SF-12), WHOQoL BREF, MINICHAL, and PECVEC are assessment tools used in the studies included in this review. The SF-36 was the most widely used tool in the studies included in this review. One of the critical domains to assess is spiritual, where none of the studies included this domain. Conclusion: The SF-36 is the most frequently used assessment tool. However, this form is a general form that is not explicitly intended to assess the quality of life in hypertension only. The spiritual domain is one of the important items that need to be included in the QoL assessment tool.