Article

AIM: To estimate health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). METHOD: HRQOL was assessed using the Health Utilities
Index Questionnaire (HUI) and the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory (PedsQL)
neuromuscular module version 3.0 online. Results were stratified by disease stage
(early/late ambulatory/non-ambulatory) and caregivers' perceptions of patients'
health and mental status. RESULTS: A total of 770 patient-caregiver pairs (173
German, 122 Italian, 191 UK, and 284 USA) participated. Most caregivers (>84%)
perceived their patients as happy/somewhat happy and in excellent/very good/good
health, irrespective of current ambulatory class. In contrast, mean patient
utility (reflecting public preferences: 0, dead; 1, perfect health) deteriorated
with disease course, from 0.75 in early ambulatory males to 0.15 in the most
severely affected patients. Mean patient PedsQL scores (0-100, higher score
indicating better HRQOL) decreased from 80 to 57 across ambulatory classes.
INTERPRETATION: HRQOL in DMD, measured through public preferences, is
substantially impaired in relation to the general population and significantly
associated with disease progression. Still, most patients are perceived as happy
and in good health by their caregivers, indicating that influential domains of
HRQOL remain intact through the disease progression. Our findings emphasize the
challenges in measuring HRQOL in a rare, progressive childhood condition such as DMD.
CI - (c) 2015 The Authors. Developmental Medicine & Child Neurology published by John
Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Mac Keith Press.

Langue : ANGLAIS