Korean J Fam Pract.  2022 Feb;12(1):22-27. 10.21215/kjfp.2022.12.1.22.

Comparison of Health Related Quality of Life of One- and Multi-Person Households Using EQ-5D Based on the 7th Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey

• Han SI
• Huh Y
• Sunwoo S

• KMID: 2526368
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.21215/kjfp.2022.12.1.22

Abstract

Background
The number of one-person households is rapidly increasing in Korea. One-person households have been found to have weak physical and mental health status due to the high morbidity of chronic and mental diseases. In this study, we compared health-related quality of life between single- and multi-person households.
Methods
The original data from the 7th Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2016–2018 were used in the study, and EQ-5D was employed as an instrument to measure health-related quality of life. A chi-square independence test was conducted, and multiple logistic regression analysis that corrected for age, sex, educational level, multimorbidity, smoking status, and alcohol consumption was performed.
Results
Multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that the quality of life of one-person households was lower than multi-person households in all five dimensions of EQ-5D (P<0.001). Compared to multi-person households, the odds ratio for difficulty with self-care, unusual activities, pain/ discomfort, and anxiety/depression significantly increased in one-person households in the male category. In the female category, the risk of immobility and unusual activities in one-person households significantly increased compared to multi-person households.
Conclusion
One-person households self-reported lower physical (physical capability, self-management, usual activities, pain/discomfort) and mental (anxiety/depression) quality of life. This indicates the necessity to establish a healthy support system in order to improve health-related quality of life of one-person households in an era where the number of one-person households continues to increase.

Keyword

One-Person Household; Quality of Life; Multimorbidity