고혈압 노인의 가구소득과 건강관련 삶의 질 간 관계에서 약제비 부담의 매개효과에 관한 연구

Mediating Effect of Drug Burden on the Relationship between Household Income and Health-related Quality of Life of the Elderly with Hypertension

The purpose of this study was to examine the mediating effect of drug cost burden on the relationship between household income and quality of life in hypertensive elderly. The subjects of this study were 4,722 elderly people aged 65 or older who had hypertension among 180,130 patients who had Korea Health Panel. The analytical method used was hierarchical regression analysis, and the mediating effect was tested according to the method proposed by Baron and Kenny. The results showed that the partial mediation effect of drug cost burden was significant in relation to the household income and health-related quality of life of the elderly with hypertension. Based on the results of this study, we propose to establish an income assistance program for drug cost burden of low-income elderly with hypertension.