Purpose: This study examines the independent and interactive effects of age and multiple sclerosis (MS) on health-related quality of life (HRQOL).
Materials and methods: The sample included persons with MS (n = 207) and healthy controls (HCs; n = 99) divided into three age groups (young, middle-aged, and older adults) who completed a battery of questionnaires, including the 36-item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36) as a measure of HRQOL. The SF-36 yielded scores for the Physical Component Summary (PCS) (i.e. physical HRQOL) and Mental Component Summary (MCS) (i.e. mental HRQOL). The data were analyzed using two-way MANOVA.
Results: There was no interaction between age and disease status on HRQOL, but there were significant main effects of age and disease status on HRQOL. HRQOL was significantly lower in participants with MS than HCs, regardless of age. Physical HRQOL was lower, whereas mental HRQOL was higher across age groups.
Conclusion: The findings suggest that future research should develop behavioral and rehabilitation approaches that are applicable for improving HRQOL across the lifespan in persons with MS, particularly for physical HRQOL in older adults with MS.
Keywords: Multiple sclerosis; age; disease status; physical quality of life, mental quality of life.