Article

Understanding the content of health-related quality of life (HRQOL)
questionnaires can facilitate comparison and selection of the most appropriate
tool in the assessment of patients with low back pain.
The International
Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF), as part of the
WHO-FIC, can be used as a standardised method for mapping and comparing HRQOL
questionnaire content. The purpose of this study was to link the Bournemouth
Questionnaire (BQ) to the ICF in order to assess and compare the content of the
BQ to the brief ICF core sets for low back pain. METHODS:
The BQ was linked to
the ICF following the rules described by Cieza and Stuki. Following the linking
process, the results were further linked to the brief ICF core sets for low back
pain. RESULTS: The BQ covered 21 ICF categories within the domains of body
functions and activities and participation. Only five meaningful concepts could
not be linked to the ICF. The brief core sets for low back pain contain 35
categories, identified as important concepts in back pain patients. The BQ
covered 10 of the categories of the brief core sets. CONCLUSION: HRQOL tools
provide valuable information about the health status of patients. Content
comparison based on ICF provides relevant information about the concepts covered
and enables selection of the appropriate clinical tools.
The BQ is easy to
administer and is linked to a number of important concepts contained within the
ICF and to concepts considered to be important in the assessment of patients with
LBP. Implications for Rehabilitation Selecting appropriate health-related quality
of life (HRQOL) tools can prove difficult, with such a variety of them available,
and each with varying content. ICF provides a standardised framework for the
content assessment of HRQOL tools. Understanding the content of HRQOL tools can
facilitate better tool selection and assist in the accurate assessment of patients with low back pain.

Langue : ANGLAIS