The 'Wound-QoL': A short questionnaire measuring quality of life in patients with chronic wounds [Abstract]

Objectives To develop a short questionnaire measuring health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in patients with chronic wounds. Methods Three validated instruments assessing HRQoL in chronic wounds, the Freiburg Life Quality Assessment for wounds (FLQA-w), the Cardiff Wound Impact Schedule (CWIS), and the Würzburg Wound Score (WWS), were filled in by 154 leg ulcer patients in a prospective study under routine care. For implementation in the new, shorter questionnaire Wound-QoL, those of all 92 items were selected that covered the core content of the three questionnaires and showed good psychometric properties (e. g. number of missing values, inter-item correlations). Internal consistency, convergent validity regarding four generic HRQoL measures such as the EQ-5D, and responsiveness of the Wound-QoL were analysed using the longitudinal study data on the selected items (so-called virtual validation). Subscales were determined with factor analysis. Item, instruction, and response scale wording of the Wound-QoL were harmonized. Results Seventeen items were included in the Wound-QoL questionnaire which could be attributed to three subscales on everyday life, body, and psyche. Both global score and subscale scores were internally consistent with Cronbach’s alpha values between 0.71 and 0.91. The global score showed significant convergent validity (r=0.48 to 0.69, depending on the criterion) and responsiveness regarding change in generic HRQoL (r=0.18 to 0.52); the same was true for the subscale scores. Conclusions The Wound-QoL for measurement of HRQoL in chronic wounds proved to be internally consistent, valid, and responsive in the virtual validation analysis