Determination of quality of life and their perceived social support from family of patients with HIV/AIDS

Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) is a significant disease which affects the individual physically, emotionally, and socially. The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between the quality of life and social support of patients with HIV/AIDS. 49 patients with HIV/AIDS who applied to the Infectious Diseases Polyclinics of the university hospital between November 2010 and December 2011 were enrolled in study. All the data were collected using a personal information form, SF 36 quality of life scale (QOL) and perceived social support from the family scale (PSS-Fa). Average age of patients was 41.23 ± 10.62, 65.3 % of them were male. It was found that the diagnosis period for 55.1 % of patients was 24 months or longer, and 55.1 % of them were diagnosed at a university hospital, 81.6 % received a treatment. When the average scores of QOL was analyzed, it was found that the average score of functional status subscale was 39.35 ± 8.90, well-being subscale was 42.59 ± 14.70, general health perception subscale was 19.18 ± 6.25 and global quality of life score was 33.70 ± 9.31. The mean PSS-Fa score of patients was 28.65 ± 9.56. Comparing socio-demographic and clinical characteristics of patients and average scores of QOL and PSS-Fa, there was not a statistically significant relation (p > 0.05). No statistically significant correlation was found between the average scores of QOL and PSS-Fa. These results showed that quality of life was poor and perceived social support was moderate in patients with HIV/AIDS. According to these results, it is recommended that patients with HIV/AIDS should be supported in this regard. © 2013 Springer Science+Business Media New York