Abstract
The aim of this study was to develop a measure of the impact of pulmonary hypertension (PH) on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) as there is a need for a short, validated instrument that can be used in routine clinical practice.
Interviews were conducted with 30 PH patients to derive 32 statements, which were presented as a semantic differential six-point scale (0–5), with contrasting adjectives at each end. This item list was completed by patients attending PH clinics across the UK and Ireland. Rasch analysis was applied to identify items fitting a uni-dimensional model.
226 patients (mean age 55.6±14 years; 70% female) with PH (82% had pulmonary arterial hypertension) completed the study questionnaires. 10 of the 32 items demonstrated fit to the Rasch model (Chi-squared 16; p>0.05) and generated the emPHasis-10 questionnaire. Test–retest (intraclass correlation coefficient 0.95, n=33) and internal consistency (Chronbach’s α=0.9) were strong. emPHasis-10 scores correlated consistently with other relevant measures and discriminated subgroups of patients stratified by World Health Organization functional class (ANOVA F=1.73; p<0.001).
The emPHasis-10 is a short questionnaire for assessing HRQoL in pulmonary arterial hypertension. It has excellent measurement properties and is sensitive to differences in relevant clinical parameters. It is freely available for clinical and academic use.
Abstract
emPHasis-10 is a short, valid tool for routine assessment of health-related quality of life in pulmonary hypertension http://ow.ly/qv75v
Footnotes
For editorial comments see page 960.
This article has supplementary material available from www.erj.ersjournals.com
Support statement: This study was funded by the Pulmonary Hypertension Association UK (Rotherham, UK).
Conflict of interest: Disclosures can be found alongside the online version of this article at www.erj.ersjournals.com
- Received July 24, 2013.
- Accepted October 20, 2013.
- ©ERS 2014
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