TY - JOUR
T1 - Optimism and Health Self-Perception-Related Differences in Indigenous Kiwchas of Ecuador at Low and High Altitude
T2 - A Cross-Sectional Analysis
AU - Ortiz-Prado, Esteban
AU - Simbaña-Rivera, Katherine
AU - Duta, Diego
AU - Ochoa, Israel
AU - Izquierdo-Condoy, Juan S.
AU - Vasconez, Eduardo
AU - Carrasco, Kathia
AU - Calvopiña, Manuel
AU - Viscor, Gines
AU - Paz, Clara
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© Copyright 2022, Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers 2022.
PY - 2022/3
Y1 - 2022/3
N2 - Ortiz-Prado, Esteban, Katherine Simbaña-Rivera, Diego Duta, Israel Ochoa, Juan S. Izquierdo-Condoy, Eduardo Vasconez, Kathia Carrasco, Manuel Calvopiña, Gines Viscor, and Clara Paz. Optimism and health self-perception-related differences in indigenous Kiwchas of Ecuador at low and high altitude: A cross-sectional analysis. High Alt Med Biol. 23:26-36, 2022. Background: Living at high altitude causes adaptive responses at every physiological and molecular level within the human body. Emotional and psychological short-or long-Term consequences, including mood changes, higher mental overload, and depression prevalence, as well as increased risk to commit suicide have been reported among highlanders. The objective of this report is to explore the differences in self-reported dispositional optimism and health perception among sex-, age-, and genotype-controlled indigenous Kiwcha natives living at two different altitudes. Methods: A cross-sectional analysis of the comparison of means of subscales and summary scores of the 36-item short-form health survey (SF-36) self-reported questionnaire and the Life Orientation Test-Revised was conducted among 219 adults Kiwchas living at low (230 m) and high altitude (3,800 m) in Ecuador. Results: High-Altitude dwellers presented lower scores in all the studied dimensions of SF-36 and the total score. Differences were found for the role limitation sphere due to vitality (p = 0.005), mental health (p = 0.002), and social functioning (p = 0.005). In all the cases, participants living at low altitudes scored higher than those living at high altitudes. Lowland women were more optimistic than their high-Altitude counterparts. Conclusions: We observe that populations located at high altitudes have more unfavorable self-reported health states. Although our results depict the existence of significant differences in the health status of indigenous peoples living at different altitudes, further studies are needed to explain in depth the sociodemographic and/or environmental factors that might underlie these differences.
AB - Ortiz-Prado, Esteban, Katherine Simbaña-Rivera, Diego Duta, Israel Ochoa, Juan S. Izquierdo-Condoy, Eduardo Vasconez, Kathia Carrasco, Manuel Calvopiña, Gines Viscor, and Clara Paz. Optimism and health self-perception-related differences in indigenous Kiwchas of Ecuador at low and high altitude: A cross-sectional analysis. High Alt Med Biol. 23:26-36, 2022. Background: Living at high altitude causes adaptive responses at every physiological and molecular level within the human body. Emotional and psychological short-or long-Term consequences, including mood changes, higher mental overload, and depression prevalence, as well as increased risk to commit suicide have been reported among highlanders. The objective of this report is to explore the differences in self-reported dispositional optimism and health perception among sex-, age-, and genotype-controlled indigenous Kiwcha natives living at two different altitudes. Methods: A cross-sectional analysis of the comparison of means of subscales and summary scores of the 36-item short-form health survey (SF-36) self-reported questionnaire and the Life Orientation Test-Revised was conducted among 219 adults Kiwchas living at low (230 m) and high altitude (3,800 m) in Ecuador. Results: High-Altitude dwellers presented lower scores in all the studied dimensions of SF-36 and the total score. Differences were found for the role limitation sphere due to vitality (p = 0.005), mental health (p = 0.002), and social functioning (p = 0.005). In all the cases, participants living at low altitudes scored higher than those living at high altitudes. Lowland women were more optimistic than their high-Altitude counterparts. Conclusions: We observe that populations located at high altitudes have more unfavorable self-reported health states. Although our results depict the existence of significant differences in the health status of indigenous peoples living at different altitudes, further studies are needed to explain in depth the sociodemographic and/or environmental factors that might underlie these differences.
KW - body pain
KW - emotional health
KW - high altitude
KW - optimism
KW - physical functioning
KW - SF-36
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85127988980&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1089/ham.2021.0046
DO - 10.1089/ham.2021.0046
M3 - Article
C2 - 35020475
AN - SCOPUS:85127988980
SN - 1527-0297
VL - 23
SP - 26
EP - 36
JO - High Altitude Medicine and Biology
JF - High Altitude Medicine and Biology
IS - 1
ER -