Psychometric performance of the Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire in a US sample

Qual Life Res. 1998 Feb;7(2):127-34. doi: 10.1023/a:1008853325724.

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the psychometric characteristics of the Juniper Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire (AQLQ) in a sample of asthmatics from the USA, employing data from the Asthma Symptom Utility Index (ASUI) validation study. One hundred and sixty-one adults (66 men) undergoing standard care in an asthma clinic participated in the study (mean age = 34.7 +/- 10.7 years, mean duration of illness = 17.3 +/- 11.22 years and mean FEV1% predicted = 85.6% +/- 17.1%). The internal consistency reliability (infinity) ranged from 0.90 (environment subscale) to 0.95 (overall score) and the 2 week reproducibility (ICC) ranged from 0.81 (activities subscale) to 0.93 (symptoms subscale). The AQLQ was significantly correlated with an asthma disease severity scale and the Health Utilities Index (p < 0.001). No relationship was found between the AQLQ score and FEV1% predicted. Men reported better overall quality of life (QoL), fewer activity limitations and less environmental exposure than women (p < 0.01), while patients with a high school education or less had more severe asthma and poorer QoL across all subscales (p < 0.001). This may reflect the differential experiences of asthma across gender and socioeconomic groups. The results suggest that the AQLQ may be a useful outcome measure for clinical trials conducted in the USA.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Analysis of Variance
  • Asthma / psychology*
  • Cross-Sectional Studies
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Psychometrics
  • Quality of Life*
  • Reproducibility of Results
  • Severity of Illness Index
  • Statistics, Nonparametric
  • Surveys and Questionnaires*
  • United States