To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to investigate the factors associated with HRQoL in LAM patients. Our results showed that general health and vitality were the most highly impacted domains assessed by the generic questionnaire (SF-36). Additionally, dyspnoea and fatigue were the most highly impacted domains assessed by the specific questionnaire (CRQ). Furthermore, physical capacity, anxiety, and depression symptoms were strongly associated with HRQoL. Finally, lung function parameters were weakly associated with HRQoL.
In the current study, we observed that general health and vitality were the most strongly impaired SF-36 domains. Interestingly, our observations are similar to those reported by Baldi and coworkers6 (general health: 56 ± 19 vs. 65 ± 25; vitality: 56 ± 20 vs. 64 ± 23). The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute provides the largest registry, enrolling 230 patients with LAM, and the physical component domain of the SF-36 was lower than the mental component score (39.7 ± 0.82 and 50.2 ± 0.66, respectively)18. These results emphasize that LAM patients have impaired quality of life, with worse scores in the physical and emotional domains when assessed using SF-36.
According to the HRQoL, as determined by a specific questionnaire (CRQ), dyspnoea and fatigue are the most strongly impaired domains. Our results are partially supported by a previous study demonstrating that dyspnoea and fatigue are reported by the vast majority of patients with interstitial lung disease (ILD)19. In addition, a CRQ validation study of Brazilian patients with COPD obtained scores similar to those of our LAM patients in all domains (fatigue 4.5 ± 1.2 vs. 4.3 ± 1.2; emotional function 4.8 ± 1.0 vs. 4.4 ± 1; self-control 5.1 ± 1.3 vs. 5.1 ± 1.1 score; respectively), except for the dyspnoea domain, which was worse in LAM patients than in patients with COPD (4.6 ± 1.3 vs. 3.8 ± 1.4 score, respectively). Given that a < 0.5-point difference in each domain is the minimum clinically important difference, we can assume that the quality of life of patients with LAM is quite similar to that of patients with severe to very severe COPD in most CRQ domains, despite the large difference in lung function between the two groups of patients20. The discrepancy in the dyspnoea domain scores between LAM and COPD patients might be explained by the specific characteristics of each population, such as age and physical activity levels, as well as disease severity and the subjective aspects related to the perception of dyspnoea.
Martinez and coworkers21 reported that the general health and vitality domains assessed by the SF-36 had a good relationship with dyspnoea scores in patients with IPF. However, the outcomes associated with HRQoL in LAM patients remain poorly known, mainly because the disease is quite rare. Our results showed an association between the domains of generic and specific questionnaires and the physical capacity parameters as assessed by laboratory or field tests. The CPET is the gold standard for quantifying exercise capacity and evaluating the pathophysiological mechanisms of dyspnoea and exercise limitations in people with CRDs. In patients with COPD and IPF, aerobic capacity (VO2, in kg/min) is a marker of mortality and induced hypoxemia and also an important marker to assess the response to pulmonary rehabilitation22. Our results clearly demonstrated that aerobic capacity (peak VO2) and depression symptoms were the main variables independently associated with almost all SF-36 and CRQ domains. However, since this was a cross-sectional study, it is not possible to infer causality. Most women receive a diagnosis during a productive and reproductive period of life, and such a diagnosis may affect them, increasing the risk of developing anxiety and depression symptoms. Most likely, the increase in those symptoms may reduce their physical activity, impacting their aerobic capacity. As a consequence, it seems reasonable to assume that anxiety and depression symptoms and physical capacity are the most relevant features to LAM patient's quality of life.
We also observed that lung function variables were associated with few HRQoL domains, suggesting that treatments to improve patient's quality of life should be more focused on reducing anxiety and depression symptoms and improving exercise capacity than PFTs. In contrast to our results, previous studies have shown that PFTs are associated with quality of life as assessed by the SF-36 or CRQ in COPD patients23. Moua and coworkers24 also reported an association between FVC% pred and CRQ domains in patients with ILDs. However, it is difficult to compare these results appropriately because respiratory diseases differ due to their unique characteristics.
In a systematic review that evaluated features associated with HRQoL in patients with ILDs, the strongest correlation was observed between dyspnoea and the domains that concern physical health. On the other hand, the correlations between lung function parameters (FVC and DLCO) or oxygenation and HRQoL domains were weaker25. Based on our findings in which anxiety and depression symptoms remained independent outcomes associated with all HRQoL domains, we suggest that physicians should pay more attention to patients' psychosocial assessment.
Moreover, anxiety and depression symptoms occur in approximately 25% of patients with ILDs, and the percentages of these patients with clinically meaningful depression range from 7 to 49%, and with anxiety from 9 to 12%26,27, however, the percentage of patients with those symptoms is even greater among LAM patients, reaching 53%26,28. Depression and anxiety symptoms are not only essential in predicting the HRQoL of ILD patients but can also be associated with breathlessness levels28. Therefore, routine screening for depression and other underlying symptoms that can increase psychological stress and may decrease patients' HRQoL should be performed45. The present study showed that symptoms of anxiety and depression were present in LAM patients, which may lead to a vicious cycle because the greater their levels, the more physically limited patients may become, impacting the quality of life of even more individuals.
Our study had several limitations. First, it was performed in a single centre. However, our centre is the primary for treating LAM in Latin America and we assist patients from all regions of Brazil with different severities of disease. In addition, 45 participants can be considered a significant sample size due to the rarity of the disease Second, we excluded patients using continuous oxygen because their mobility is usually reduced. Therefore, our results cannot be extrapolated to this subgroup with worse disease severity. Third, there is no specific validated HRQoL questionnaire for LAM, and the CRQ, which is the most used disease-specific tool for assessing HRQoL in patients with CRDs11, was used for this study.