Impacto na qualidade de vida de pacientes submetidos a otoplastia em um hospital universitário

Abstract

Objectives: To analyze the impact on the quality of life of patients with prominent ears that underwent otoplasty. Methods: 27 patients over 15 years old were included. During the preoperative evaluation a Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) was applied in order to measure satisfaction with physical appearance. After two months postoperative VAS and Glasgow Benefit Inventory (GBI) were used to evaluate patients’ quality of life. Furthermore, a delta-VAS was established before and after surgery, relating to the GBI. Results: The preoperative VAS median was 50 and the postoperative was 100. GBI total median was 52.78 (general health 75; social relations 16.67; physical health 0). Regarding the Delta-VAS analysis with GBI, the Spearman correlation coefficient was: total results 0.99 (p=0.001), general health 0.571 (p=0.002) and social relations 0.445 (p=0.02), presenting significant positive effects. Conclusion: The otoplasty led to improvement in the patients’ quality of life with prominent ears, mostly in general health and social relations. Comparing and analyzing the results, it is possible to conclude that the improvement in satisfaction with physical appearance is directly predicting change in quality of life.