Dados do Trabalho

Título

Prevalence of food insecurity and its association with health outcomes and quality of life in patients with chronic Chagas disease

Introdução

Chagas disease (CD) is a neglected disease that affects 6 to 7 million people worldwide. Individuals with CD are usually from low socioeconomic status and, therefore, more prone to food insecurity (FI).

Objetivo (s)

To assess the frequency of FI in chronic CD and its association with anthropometric measurements, comorbidities, serum lipids, glucose and quality of life (QoL).

Material e Métodos

This is a cross-sectional study including CD patients (confirmed by two serological tests) of both sexes. The FI was evaluated according to the Brazilian scale of FI (EBIA 2003). Anthropometric measurements included weight, height, and waist circumference. Comorbidities included hypertension, diabetes mellitus, dyslipidemia, and obesity. Lipid profile and plasma glucose were also collected. QoL was assessed using the WHOQOL-Bref questionnaire. Descriptive statistics included median (25%-75% interquartile range) and percentage (frequency) for categorical variables. Linear and logistic regression models adjusted for age, sex, schooling, race, and cardiac/digestive form of CD were fitted to evaluate the association between FI status and anthropometric measurements, comorbidities, and biomarkers. Linear regression model adjusted for age, sex, race, schooling, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, dyslipidemia, obesity, and cardiac/digestive form of CD was used to assess the association between FI status and QoL.

Resultados e Conclusão

From 359 participants (55.9% women, median age 62 years), 22.7% had mild and 8% had moderate/severe FI. In adjusted models, mild FI was significantly associated with obesity (OR=1.83, 95%CI=1.03 to 3.25). Significant association were observed between FI and all QoL domains including physical health (mild FI: β= -8.37 95%CI -12.32 to -4.43; moderate/severe FI: β= -7.99 95%CI -14.09 to -1.89), psychological domain (mild FI β= -5.42 95%CI -8.99 to -1.85; moderate/severe FI β= -7.09 95%CI -12.62 to -1.57), social relationship domain (mild FI: β= -6.64 95%CI -10.40 to -2.88), environment domain (mild FI: β= -8.85 95%CI -12.04 to -5.65; moderate/severe FI β= -13.66 95%CI -18.61 to -8.71), and overall domain (mild FI β= -8.07 95%CI -12.12 to -4.01; moderate/severe FI: β= -16.73 95%CI -23.00 to -10.46). These findings suggest that FI was consistently associated with poor QoL in patients with chronic CD and highlight the need for interventions to address this issue in healthcare settings.

Palavras-chave

Chagas Disease, Food Insecurity, Nutritional Status, Quality of Life, Prevalence.

Agradecimentos

Fundação Pró-Coração – FUNDACOR