Open AccessHealth related quality of life after surgery for colonic diverticular disease
Author(s) -
Imerio Angriman,
Marco Scarpa,
Cesare Ruffolo
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
world journal of gastroenterology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.427
H-Index - 155
eISSN - 2219-2840
pISSN - 1007-9327
DOI - 10.3748/wjg.v16.i32.4013
Subject(s) - medicine , diverticular disease , quality of life (healthcare) , diverticulitis , medline , perforation , colectomy , randomized controlled trial , disease , prospective cohort study , laparoscopy , surgery , general surgery , ulcerative colitis , materials science , nursing , political science , law , punching , metallurgy
Diverticular disease (DD) of the colon is very common in developed countries and is ranked the fifth most important gastrointestinal disease worldwide. The management of acute diverticulitis without perforation and peritonitis is still debated. Health related quality of life (HRQL), subjectively perceived by patients, is becoming a major issue in the evaluation of any therapeutic intervention, mainly in patients with chronic disease. To date only a few published studies can be found on Medline examining HRQL in patients with DD. The aim of this study was to review the impact of surgery for DD on HRQL. All Medline articles regarding HRQL after surgery for colonic DD, particularly those comparing different surgical approaches, were reviewed. DD has a negative impact on HRQL with lower scores in bowel function and systemic symptoms. Both surgery-related complications and disease activity have a significant impact on patients' HRQL. While no significant differences in HRQL between different operations for DD in non-randomized studies were revealed, the only prospective double-blind randomized study that compared laparoscopic and open colectomy found that patients undergoing laparoscopic colectomy had significantly reduced major postoperative complication rates and subsequently had better HRQL scores. Formal assessment of HRQL could be a good instrument in the selection of appropriate patients for elective surgery as well as in the assessment of surgical outcome.