Factors related to perceived control and health‐related quality of life of patients after acute coronary syndrome during admission and after discharge

AIM: To explore the relationship between demographic factors, acute coronary syndrome‐related factors, perceived control and health‐related quality of life during admission, 3 months and 6 months after discharge, in patients with acute coronary syndrome. METHODS: Participants were recruited for this longitudinal study after admission for acute coronary syndrome in three university hospitals in the Tokyo metropolitan area, Japan. Self‐administered questionnaires included demographic data, perceived control, health‐related quality of life, acute coronary syndrome symptoms, fatigue, depression and anxiety. RESULTS: Participants (N = 137) had an average age of 62.8 (SD 11.6) years and 80.3% were male. As a result of Path analysis, higher perceived control (β = 0.258, p = .001), lower anxiety (β = −0.226, p = .009) and lower fatigue (β = −0.231, p = .010), were significantly related to better health‐related quality of life (General health). Only annual income was significantly related to perceived control (β = 0.187, p = .029). Eighty‐two (59.9%) participants at 3 months and 54 (39.4%) participants at 6 months completed the questionnaires. Perceived control (F = 7.074, p = .001) and General health (χ(2) = 10.22, p = .006) significantly increased over the 6 months. Perceived control during admission was significantly related with health‐related quality of life at 3 months. Perceived control at 3 months was significantly related with health‐related quality of life at 6 months. CONCLUSION: Perceived control was an important factor for health‐related quality of life of the Japanese patients with acute coronary syndrome. It is necessary to investigate whether nursing interventions to enhance perceived control lead to improvement of health‐related quality of life.