Factors Associated With Poor Quality of Life of Transgender People

Abstract

Background The term transgender (TRANS) may be used for people whose gender identity differs from the one assigned at birth. A large part of this population segment faces social (lack of social support, discrimination, rejection, transphobia) and psychological (anxiety, depression) challenges. These factors, in turn, may negatively impact the quality of life (QoL) of these individuals. The aim of this study is to identify factors that influence the quality of life of transgender people when compared with cisgender people (CIS). Methods Cross-sectional case-control study with non-probability sample, conducted with transgender and cisgender adults living in a southeastern Brazilian state. The research questionnaire was accessed electronically and comprised sociodemographic, health, and QoL information. QoL was assessed through the Short-Form 6 dimensions (SF-6D) instrument. Multivariate logistic regression was used to verify the participation of the independent variables in QoL. Odds ratio (OR) values and their respective confidence intervals (CI) were estimated. The analyses were carried out in the SPSS® software, version 22.0, with a significance level of 5%. Results The sample included 65 transgender and 78 cisgender individuals. The cisgender group showed a predominance of people with higher education (p = 0.002) and higher income (p = 0.000) when compared with the transgender group. Transgender participants had worse QoL score (p = 0.014) and the same was observed when QoL was assessed by dimension (p ≤ 0.05). In addition, having an income between 1 to 3 minimum wages (MW) reduced by 94.6% (OR = 0.054, CI = 0.004–0.707, p = 0.026) the chances of having better QoL, when compared with those with income higher than 3 MW. Living in the state’s capital reduced the chances of having better QoL by 96.2% (OR = 0.038, CI = 0.004–0.387, p = 0.006) when compared with those living in the countryside. Conclusion The transgender population showed worse QoL when compared with the cisgender population, with income and place of residence being the factors that influenced this indicator.