Maria do Carmo Correia de Lima, Rubens A. da Silva, Priscila Beaupre, Tommy Chevrette
Background: Hip pain contributes to a reduction in physical function and mobility for the activities of daily living, especially in women in the aging process. Individuals with hip-pain are also affected by psychological distress, which in turn negatively impacts functionality and quality of life or satisfaction with life.
Objective: To assess the functional status of the lower limbs, psychological distress and life satisfaction in women aged 45 to 64 with different intensities of hip pain.
Methods: From a cross-sectional study, twenty-one (21) women aged 45 to 64 were recruited voluntarily and assessed by: Sociodemographic data, clinical and validated questionnaires such as the Lequesne Pain Index, Lower Extremity Functional Scale (LEFS), psychological distress and life satisfaction. Women were further classified into 2 groups using the Lequesne Pain Index (PI): Low-PI (score ≤ 9; n=14) and Strong-PI (score ≥ 10; n=7) for subsequent analyses.
Results: Strong-PI group reported significant (p<0.001) poor lower-limb functionality (LEFS) as compared to Low-PI (effect size; g=2.59). No significant difference was observed between the groups for psychological distress and life satisfaction.
Conclusion: Although hip-pain (Strong-PI) impacts the perception of lower limb function, it was not associated with psychological distress or life satisfaction in women aged 45 to 64.