Five studies of quality of life in African-Americans with lupus
| Author, year | N | Objective | Results | Conclusions | Level of evidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barnado et al, 201276 | 126 | To study health-related quality of life in African-American patients with SLE from the Gullah population of South Carolina, which has a homogeneous genetic and environmental background and high prevalence of multipatient families with SLE | Cases had a lower PCS (41.8 vs 52.3, p<0.01), but not MCS (55.0 vs 56.0, p=0.70) compared with related controls. None of the 11 SLE American College of Rheumatology criteria, disease duration or Systemic Lupus International Collaborating Clinics Damage Index was associated with either PCS or MCS. | The lack of effect of SLE on MCS may be due to disease-coping mechanisms interplaying with cultural factors unique to the Gullah | III |
| Barnado et al, 201477 | 126 | To compare pregnancy outcomes before and after SLE diagnosis to controls to test whether there is a predisease state that negatively affects pregnancy outcomes | The odds of adverse pregnancy outcomes all increased after SLE diagnosis compared with before diagnosis, even after adjustment for age, years of education, pregnancy number and medical coverage. | There may be a predisease state that predisposes to adverse pregnancy outcomes | III |
| Woods-Giscombé et al, 201078 | 48 | To develop a preliminary conceptual framework for SWS by exploring women's descriptions of the superwoman role; perceptions of contextual factors, benefits and liabilities; and beliefs regarding how it influences health | According to the women in this study, the superwoman role involves sociohistorical and personal contextual factors as well as themes of survival and health status. | The SWS framework might be used to enhance future research on stress and African-American women's health | III |
| Chae et al, 201579 | 578 | To examine associations between unfair treatment and disease damage among African-American women with SLE | Reporting any unfair treatment was associated with greater SLE damage compared with reporting no unfair treatment. | Unfair treatment contributes to worse disease outcomes among African-American women with SLE, and unfair treatment attributed to non-racial causes may have more detrimental effects on SLE damage | IV |
| Wallace, 200380 | N/A | To examine elevated rates of SLE in African-American women in the context of immune cognition | Disease is an internalised physiological image of external patterns of structured psychosocial stress, discrimination and social disintegration experienced by ethnic minorities in the USA. | Social and economic reform necessary to decrease disease among African-American women will significantly benefit all groups | V |
MCS, mental component summary; PCS, physical component summary; SLE, systemic lupus erythematosus; SWS, superwoman schema.