The Hidden Toll of Psychological Distress in Australian Adults and Its Impact on Health-Related Quality of Life Measured as Health State Utilities

Psychological distress (PD) is a major health problem that affects all aspects of health-related quality of life including physical, mental and social health, leading to a substantial human and economic burden. Studies have revealed a concerning rise in the prevalence of PD and various mental health conditions among Australians, particularly in female individuals. There is a scarcity of studies that estimate health state utilities (HSUs), which reflect the overall health-related quality of life in individuals with PD. No such studies have been conducted in Australia thus far. We aimed to evaluate the age-specific, sex-specific and PD category-specific HSUs (disutilities) in Australian adults with PD to inform healthcare decision making in the management of PD. Data on age, sex, SF-36/SF6D responses, Kessler psychological distress (K10) scale scores and other characteristics of N = 15,139 participants (n = 8149 female individuals) aged >15 years were derived from the latest wave (21) of the nationally representative Household, Income and Labor Dynamics in Australia survey. Participants were grouped into the severity categories of no (K10 score: 10–19), mild (K10: 20–24), moderate (K10: 25–29) and severe PD (K10: 30–50). Both crude and adjusted HSUs were calculated from participants’ SF-36 profiles, considering potential confounders such as smoking, marital status, remoteness, education and income levels. The calculations were based on the SF-6D algorithm and aligned with Australian population norms. Additionally, the HSUs were stratified by age, sex and PD categories. Disutilities of PD, representing the mean difference between HSUs of people with PD and those without, were also calculated for each group. The average age of individuals was 46.130 years (46