Predictors of health promoting behaviors and health-related quality of life in post myocardial infarction adults

Cardiovascular diseases are the cause of nearly 2,400 American deaths each day and are the leading causes of death in the United States (Rosamond et al., 2007). The purpose of this secondary data analysis was to identify predictors of health promoting behaviors and health-related quality of life after a myocardial infarction (MI). The Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Survey (BRFSS) 2005 data set was used in this study and reduced (n = 6,749) to only those adults who reported experiencing a MI.

Elements of the Health Promotion Model were used as the foundation for this study and were used to determine predictors of health-related quality of life. The personal factors consist of the biological factors (age, gender, BMI, comorbidities, disabilities), sociocultural factors (marital status, education, race/ethnicity, employment, income, insurance), and psychological factors (emotional support, life satisfaction) which were examined to determine if they were predictors of health promoting behaviors (cardiac rehabilitation attendance, physical activity, fruit and vegetable intake) and if all were predictors of health-related quality of life.

A composite score was calculated for health-related quality of life and multiple regression was completed with each category of predictors (personal factors and health promoting behaviors) entered as blocks. The first block (biological factors) explained 27.2% of the variance, the second block (biological and sociocultural factors) explained 35.2% of the variance, and the third block (all personal factors) explained 39.5% of the variance in the model. The fourth block (personal factors and health promoting behaviors) added a small degree of variance. The entire model, including all blocks, accounted for the highest amount of variance (39.9%) for health-related quality of life. The predictors of health promoting behaviors and health-related quality of life for both men and women were examined. Similarities and differences were noted which suggest that the recovery experiences for men and women after a MI are somewhat different.

Overall, this study noted that many of the personal factors and health promoting behaviors did predict health-related quality of life in post MI adults. Further understanding of recovery after a MI is needed to improve outcomes.