OBJECTIVES: The short and long-term disability impacting health related quality of life (HRQOL) is a major concern among asthmatic patients. This study examined the impact of asthma on HRQOL and disparities among different demographic groups.

METHODS: The Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) data from 2013 to 2016 were used in this study. Individuals with asthma were identified using ICD-9 and ICD-10 codes. Adults of 18 years above, for whom data on quality-of-life measures based on the Short-Form generic measures (SF-12 V.2), Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K-6) and Patient Health Questionnaire-2 (PHQ-2) were included. Data were analyzed for descriptive statistics, differences and associations using the t-test, ANOVA and Chi-squared test. HRQOL scores were compared between different demographic groups. A p-value of <0.05 was considered statistically significant.

RESULTS: The study included 7,331 noninstitutionalized individuals with asthma. Participants’ mean age was 51.9 ± 0.33 years; 65.2% participants were female; 73.4% participants were white. Participants’ mean PCS-12 score was 43.4 ± 0.24 whereas the mean MCS-12 score was 49.2 ± 0.21, considerably lower than the US population mean (50 ± 10). A total of 4,993 (60.7%) participants recorded a score of 50 or less on the PCS-12 indicating physical impairment whilst 2,767 (26%) participants scored less than 42 on the MCS-12 indicating of having a clinical depression. Females with asthma had statistically significantly lower mean scores for mental health (−1.9, p<0.001) whereas males had lower score for psychological distress compared to female (-1.6, p<0.001). Similarly, racial and ethnic disparities in psychological distress scores were significant among white and black and Hispanic and white (-3.1; -1.9 p<0.001), respectively.

CONCLUSIONS: Individuals with asthma showed significant impairment in HRQOL. Our findings suggest that gender, racial and ethnic disparities in HRQOL are more pronounced and needs to be recognized and addressed more widely in the US population.