Selecting a generic measure of health-related quality of life for use among older adults

Author(s): Rothenberg, B. M., Panzer, R., Katz, P., McDermott, M. P.

Journal/Book: Eval Health Prof. 1998; 21: 2455 Teller Rd, Thousand Oaks, CA 91320. Sage Publications Inc. 244-264.

Abstract: Selecting an outcomes assessment instrument requires knowledge of their relative merits, especially head-to-head comparisons. The authors compare health-related quality-of-life (HRQOL) instruments among older adults for their psychometric properties and subject burden, specifically the Sickness Impact Profile (SIP) and Medical Outcomes Study Short Form 36 (SF-36). Subjects were 282 of 373 eligible older adults (75.6% response) ranging in age from 65 to 96 SIP scores demonstrated a strong skew toward low (good health) scores,vith a mean of 11.1% (+/-SD 11.5) on the Total SIP index score. Similar components of the SIP and SF-36 were moderately to strongly correlated. The SIP suffered from a ceiling (good health) scaling effect, and the SF-36 scales also demonstrated some scaling extremes. These results demonstrate the relative scaling limits, especially the ceiling effect, of the SIP compared to the SF-36, and in general, the SF-36 is preferred for use among community-living older adults.

Note: Article Andresen EM, St Louis Univ, Sch Publ Hlth, Dept Community Hlth, 3663 Lindell Blvd, St Louis,MO 63108 USA

Keyword(s): SICKNESS-IMPACT-PROFILE; OBESE SUBJECTS SOS; LOW-BACK-PAIN; OF-LIFE; RHEUMATOID-ARTHRITIS; MEDICAL OUTCOMES; MYOCARDIAL-INFARCTION; FUNCTIONAL ASSESSMENT; HOSPITAL ADMISSION; CARDIAC-ARREST

Zurück | Weiter

Selecting a generic measure of health-related quality of life for use among older adults - A comparison of candidate instruments