A domain specific health-related quality of life of Omani patients living with chronic wounds

Aim: Chronic wounds, defined as wounds that do not heal in a logical set of stages, impact patients’ quality of life by disrupting their self-esteem, sleep, social interaction, work capacity, and psychological well-being. Chronic wounds are a prevalent problem in Oman due to the high number of patients with diabetes, sickle cell disease, road traffic accidents, and decubitus ulcer. Therefore, it is paramount to analyse the health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of these patients with chronic wounds. Material and methods: An observational, cross-sectional, descriptive study with a quantitative approach was conducted among 275 adult patients with chronic wounds in three tertiary hospitals of Muscat from June to December 2021 using a self-reported Cardiff life wound impact questionnaire and the Bates-Jensen wound assessment tool. Data were analysed with IBM SPSS version 23 using inferential statistics and chi-square test. Results: We found that the majority of participants were men (178; 64.7 %), aged between 41 and 60 years (107; 38.9 %), predominantly with diabetic wounds (80; 29.1 %). Respondents reported poor HRQOL across all domains: well-being (63.24 ± 18.092), physical (53.24 ± 18.387), and social (59.54 ± 19.025). Statistically significant poorer HRQOL was observed among the elderly above 60 years, illiterates, those with traumatic wounds, and those receiving medication and dressing as treatment. Conclusions: Our findings indicate that Omani patients with chronic wounds experience low HRQOL. It is imperative for healthcare providers to offer comprehensive care to these patients. To enhance their quality of life and alleviate suffering, evaluating both the wounds and HRQOL is essential. Such assessments will enable the optimisation of treatment and coping strategies for patients.