Patient-focused measures of functional health status and health-related quality of life in pediatric orthopedics: A case study in measurement selection

The objectives of this report are to review the assessment of patient-focused outcomes in pediatric orthopedic surgery, to describe a framework for identifying appropriate sets of measures, and to illustrate an application of the framework to a challenging orthopedic problem. A detailed framework of study design and measurement factors is described. The factors are important for selecting appropriate instruments to measure health status and health-related quality of life (HRQL) in a particular context. A study to evaluate treatment alternatives for patients with neurofibromatosis type 1 and congenital tibial dysplasia (NF1-CTD) provides a rich illustration of the application of the framework. The application involves great variability in the instrument selection factors. Furthermore, these patients and their supportive caregivers face numerous complex health challenges with long-term implications for HRQL. Detailed summaries of important generic preference-based multi-attribute measurement systems, pediatric health profile instruments, and pediatric orthopedic-specific instruments are presented. Age-appropriate generic and specific measures are identified for study of NF1-CTD patients. Selected measures include the Activities Scale for Children, Gillette Functional Assessment Questionnaire Walking Scale, Health Utilities Index, and Pediatric Inventory of Quality of Life. Reliable and valid measures for application to pediatric orthopedics are available. There are important differences among measures. The selected measures complement each other. The framework in this report provides a guide for selecting appropriate measures. Application of appropriate sets of measures will enhance the ability to describe the morbidity of pediatric orthopedic patients and to assess the effectiveness of alternative clinical interventions. The framework for measurement of health status and HRQL from a patient perspective has relevance to many other areas of orthopedic practice

Training clinicians in how to use patient-reported outcome measures in routine clinical practice

Introduction: Patient-reported outcome measures (PROs) were originally developed for comparing groups of people in clinical trials and population studies, and the results were used to support treatment recommendations or inform health policy, but there was not direct benefit for the participants providing PROs data. However, as the experience in using those measures increased, it became obvious the clinical value in using individual patient PROs profiles in daily practice to identify/monitor symptoms, evaluate treatment outcomes and support shared decision-making. A key issue limiting successful implementation is clinicians’ lack of knowledge on how to effectively utilize PROs data in their clinical encounters. Methods: Using a change management theoretical framework, this paper describes the development and implementation of three programs for training clinicians to effectively use PRO data in routine practice. The training programs are in three diverse clinical areas (adult oncology, lung transplant and paediatrics), in three countries with different healthcare systems, thus providing a rare opportunity to pull out common approaches whilst recognizing specific settings. For each program, we describe the clinical and organizational setting, the program planning and development, the content of the training session with supporting material, subsequent monitoring of PROs use and evidence of adoption. The common successful components and practical steps are identified, leading to discussion and future recommendations. Results: The results of the three training programs are described as the implementation. In the oncology program, PRO data have been developed and are currently evaluated; in the lung transplant program, PRO data are used in daily practice and the integration with electronic patient records is under development; and in the paediatric program, PRO data are fully implemented with around 7,600 consultations since the start of the implementation. Conclusion: Adult learning programs teaching clinicians how to use and act on PROs in clinical practice are a key steps in supporting patient engagement and participation in shared decision-making. Researchers and clinicians from different clinical areas should collaborate to share ideas, develop guidelines and promote good practice in patient-centred care

The impact of health on professionally active people's incomes in Poland. Microeconometric analysis

The outcome of the research confirms the occurrence of positive interaction between professionally active people's incomes and the self-assessed state of health. People declaring a bad state of health have incomes by 20% on average lower than people who enjoy good health (assuming that the remaining characteristics of the surveyed person are the same). In case of men, the impact of health state on incomes is slightly greater than in case of women.Wyniki badań potwierdzają istnienie pozytywnej zależności dochodów osób aktywnych zawodowo od stanu zdrowia mierzonego jego samooceną. Osoby deklarujące zły stan zdrowia osiągają dochody przeciętnie o 20% niższe niż osoby, które cieszą się dobrym stanem zdrowia (przy założeniu, że pozostałe charakterystyki badanej osoby są takie same). W przypadku mężczyzn zależność dochodów od stanu zdrowia jest nieznacznie silniejsza niż w przypadku kobiet

An assessment of validity and responsiveness of generic measures of health-related quality of life in hearing impairment

This article is made available through the Brunel Open Access Publishing Fund. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits any use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author(s) and the source are credited.Purpose: This review examines psychometric performance of three widely used generic preference-based measures, that is, EuroQol 5 dimensions (EQ-5D), Health Utility Index 3 (HUI3) and Short-form 6 dimensions (SF-6D) in patients with hearing impairments. Methods: A systematic search was undertaken to identify studies of patients with hearing impairments where health state utility values were measured and reported. Data were extracted and analysed to assess the reliability, validity (known group differences and convergent validity) and responsiveness of the measures across hearing impairments. Results: Fourteen studies (18 papers) were included in the review. HUI3 was the most commonly used utility measures in hearing impairment. In all six studies, the HUI3 detected difference between groups defined by the severity of impairment, and four out of five studies detected statistically significant changes as a result of intervention. The only study available suggested that EQ-5D only had weak ability to discriminate difference between severity groups, and in four out of five studies, EQ-5D failed to detected changes. Only one study involved the SF-6D; thus, the information is too limited to conclude on its performance. Also evidence for the reliability of these measures was not found. Conclusion: Overall, the validity and responsiveness of the HUI3 in hearing impairment was good. The responsiveness of EQ-5D was relatively poor and weak validity was suggested by limited evidence. The evidence on SF-6D was too limited to make any judgment. More head-to-head comparisons of these and other preference measures of health are required.Medical Research Counci

Construct validation of the Health Utilities Index and the Child Health Questionnaire in children undergoing cancer chemotherapy

The objective of this study was to evaluate the construct validity of two questionnaire-based measures of health-related quality of life (HRQL) in children undergoing cancer chemotherapy: the Health Utilities Index (HUI) and the Child Health Questionnaire (CHQ). Subjects were children hospitalised for chemotherapy. To examine construct validity: (1) a priori expected relations between CHQ concepts and HUI attributes were examined; (2) HUI and CHQ summary scores were compared to visual analogue scale (VAS) scores. Ease of completion was rated using a 5-point categorical scale and completion time was recorded. A total of 36 subjects were included. The maximum score was seen in 15 (47%) of HUI3 assessments. As predicted, CHQ body pain was moderately correlated with HUI3 pain (r=0.51), CHQ physical functioning was moderately correlated with HUI2 mobility (r=0.58) and CHQ mental health was moderately correlated with HUI2 emotion (r=0.53). Only the CHQ psychosocial subscale (and not HUI) was correlated with VAS (r=0.44). The CHQ and the HUI were both easy to use. The HUI questionnaires required less time to complete (mean=3.1, s.d.=1 min) compared with CHQ (mean=13.1, s.d.=3.4 min, P<0.0001). In conclusion, HUI and CHQ demonstrated construct validity in children undergoing cancer chemotherapy. The Health Utilities Index is subject to a ceiling effect whereas CHQ requires more time to complete

Preferred reporting items for studies mapping onto preference-based outcome measures: The MAPS statement

'Mapping' onto generic preference-based outcome measures is increasingly being used as a means of generating health utilities for use within health economic evaluations. Despite publication of technical guides for the conduct of mapping research, guidance for the reporting of mapping studies is currently lacking. The MAPS (MApping onto Preference-based measures reporting Standards) statement is a new checklist, which aims to promote complete and transparent reporting of mapping studies. The primary audiences for the MAPS statement are researchers reporting mapping studies, the funders of the research, and peer reviewers and editors involved in assessing mapping studies for publication. A de novo list of 29 candidate reporting items and accompanying explanations was created by a working group comprised of six health economists and one Delphi methodologist. Following a two-round, modified Delphi survey with representatives from academia, consultancy, health technology assessment agencies and the biomedical journal editorial community, a final set of 23 items deemed essential for transparent reporting, and accompanying explanations, was developed. The items are contained in a user friendly 23 item checklist. They are presented numerically and categorised within six sections, namely: (i) title and abstract; (ii) introduction; (iii) methods; (iv) results; (v) discussion; and (vi) other. The MAPS statement is best applied in conjunction with the accompanying MAPS explanation and elaboration document. It is anticipated that the MAPS statement will improve the clarity, transparency and completeness of reporting of mapping studies. To facilitate dissemination and uptake, the MAPS statement is being co-published by eight health economics and quality of life journals, and broader endorsement is encouraged. The MAPS working group plans to assess the need for an update of the reporting checklist in five years' time. This statement was published jointly in Applied Health Economics and Health Policy, Health and Quality of Life Outcomes, International Journal of Technology Assessment in Health Care, Journal of Medical Economics, Medical Decision Making, PharmacoEconomics, and Quality of Life Research

The Generation R study: A candidate gene study and genome-wide association study (GWAS) on health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of mothers and young children

Aim: The aim of this paper is to describe the Generation R study as a template that enables candidate gene study and genome-wide association study regarding health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of mothers and their young children. Methods: Generation R is a population-based prospective cohort study from fetal life onwards in Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Children were born in 2002-2006. Blood from mothers and placenta cord blood were sampled. Mothers' HRQOL was measured 5 times during pregnancy and after birth using SF-12 and EQ-5D. Children's HRQOL was measured 5 times between age 1 and 5/6 years using Infant-Toddler Quality Of Life questionnaire (ITQOL), Health Status Classification System PreSchool (HSCS-PS) and Child Health Questionnaire Parent Form 28 items (CHQ-PF28), respectively. Results: DNA is available for 8,055 mothers and 5,908 children. Genotyping of various candidate genes and a genome-wide association (GWA) scan (Illumina 610K) of child DNA were done. A template for gene-HRQOL analyses is provided. We start with candidate gene study on HRQOL of mothers and children. Gene-environment interaction and interaction with medical indicators of health status will be explored. Next, GWA study on HRQOL will be performed. Conclusions: Gaining insight into the determinants of HRQOL is essential to assisting efforts in health policy and clinical application to improve well-being and health. In the future, it might be possible to complement HRQOL assessments by examinations of genetic markers. Strengths and weaknesses of the Generation R study are discussed

Are symbols useful and culturally acceptable in health-state valuation studies? An exploratory study in a multi-ethnic Asian population

10.2147/PPA.S4142Patient Preference and Adherence2271-27