Assessment of quality of life in glaucoma patients using the Glaucoma Quality of Life-15 questionnaire

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to assess quality of life in glaucoma patients using the Glaucoma Quality of Life-15 (GQL-15) questionnaire. The GQL-15 questionnaire is a glaucoma-specific quality of life questionnaire used to assess the degree of functional disability caused by glaucoma. Design: Cross-sectional, prospective study with comparison group at a tertiary care hospital. Materials and methods: The GQL-15 questionnaire was used to evaluate the quality of 80 patients in the glaucoma group and 80 normal subjects in the control group. The data were analyzed by test of proportions and Chi-square test. A p-value of < 0.05 was considered significant. Results: Glaucoma patients (mean age: 60.5 ± 9.2 years; range: 43–86 years) and comparison group (mean age: 58.9 ± 4.5 years; 52–72 years) were matched with respect to age (p = 0.18). Glaucoma patients had significantly worse quality of life compared to the non-glaucoma group (p < 0.001). Significant differences (p < 0.05) between the scores of the mild, moderate, and severe glaucoma groups were observed, suggesting poorer quality of life as the severity of glaucoma increases. Conclusions: The GQL-15 revealed that quality of life worsens with increasing severity of glaucoma increases. This fact is important when educating patients about the disease course and its therapy.