Gender-specific associations between quality of life and leukocyte telomere length

Abstract

We conducted a study on the relationship between leukocyte telomere length (LTL) and quality of life (QoL) in 82 couples aged 55 and older. LTL was measured by quantitative real-time PCR. QoL was evaluated using the physical component score (PCS) and mental component score (MCS) on the Korean version of the Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36). LTL was found to be independently associated with the SF-36 PCS in males (β=0.014, p=0.03) and the SF-36 MCS in females (β=1.16, p<0.01). Thus LTL is associated with QoL in gender-specific ways.

Keywords: Gender-specific associations; Leukocyte telomere length; Quality of life; Sex difference.