Health Qual Life Out
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Health Qual Life Out · Nov 2005
Comparative StudyComparative assessment of three different indices of multimorbidity for studies on health-related quality of life.
Measures of multimorbidity are often applied to source data, populations or outcomes outside the scope of their original developmental work. As the development of a multimorbidity measure is influenced by the population and outcome used, these influences should be taken into account when selecting a multimorbidity index. The aim of this study was to compare the strength of the association of health-related quality of life (HRQOL) with three multimorbidity indices: the Cumulative Illness Rating Scale (CIRS), the Charlson index (Charlson) and the Functional Comorbidity Index (FCI). The first two indices were not developed in light of HRQOL. ⋯ The CIRS is a better choice as a measure of multimorbidity than the FCI and the Charlson when HRQOL is the outcome of interest. However, the FCI may provide a good option to evaluate the physical aspect of HRQOL for the ease in its administration and scoring. The Charlson index may not be recommended as a measure of multimorbidity in studies related to either physical or mental aspects of HRQOL.
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Health Qual Life Out · Nov 2005
Cross-cultural validation and analysis of responsiveness of the QUALIOST: QUAlity of Life questionnaire In OSTeoporosis.
The QUALIOST was designed for use with the SF-36 to measure established osteoporosis-specific quality of life (QoL). The reliability (internal consistency and test-retest) and validity of the questionnaire were established in a stand-alone psychometric validation study. The objective of this paper is to provide additional information on the instrument's responsiveness using clinical trial data, along with the reliability and validity of translated versions. ⋯ The QUALIOST is a reliable and valid tool for measuring QoL in postmenopausal osteoporotic women. Being available in several validated language versions, it is ready to be used in a variety of settings, including international clinical trials.