Measurement of HRQL using EQ-5D in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus in Japan

We measured the health-related quality of life (HRQL) of diabetes mellitus patients using the Japanese version of EQ-5D, and examined the relationship between clinical condition and health status. A study was conducted on 220 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus at a hospital in Saitama Prefecture on the day of their visit from November 17 to December 24, 1998. Patients evaluated their health status using five dimensions (5D) and a visual analog scale (VAS). The EQ-5D score was calculated based on the 5D responses using the Japanese version of the value set. There were no responses of "extreme problem." The frequency of "some problem" was significantly higher in patients with complications than in those without for mobility (27.4% and 14.4%) and anxiety/depression (25.7% and 13.5%). The mean EQ-5D score was 0.846 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.817-0.874) in patients with complications versus 0.884 (95% CI 0.855-0.914) in those without complications. There was no statistically significant difference between VAS scores according to the presence or absence of diabetic complications, but a significant difference in VAS scores was seen according to the presence or absence of retinopathy. These findings suggest the value of measuring health status in diabetes mellitus patients, because it is able to comprehensively evaluate the patient's health condition, and add another dimension to the subjective symptoms and laboratory data.