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A useful tool to assess quality of LIFE in rheumatoid arthritis patients that does not require a license: QOL-RA II

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Abstract

To validate the Quality of Life-Rheumatoid Arthritis Scale II (QOL-RA II) in an Argentinean cohort of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Patients ≥ 18 years old, with a diagnosis of RA according to ACR-EULAR 2010 criteria, were included in a cross-sectional study. Sociodemographic data, comorbidities, RA characteristics, disease activity, and current treatment were registered. Questionnaires were administered, including EQ-5D-3 L, QOL-RA II, HAQ-A, and PHQ-9. The QOL-RA II was re-administered in 20 patients to evaluate reproducibility. Four hundred and thirty patients were included. Median QOL-RA was 6.6 (IQR 5.3–8). Mean time to complete it was 1.7 ± 0.57 min and to calculate it was 12 ± 1.7 s. It showed very good reliability (Cronbach’s alpha 0.97), reproducibility (ICC, 0.96), and good correlation between the different items and the total questionnaire, without evidence of redundancy. Besides, QOL-RA II presented good correlation with EQ-5D-3L (Rho, 0.6) and moderate with DAS28 (Rho, 0.38), and CDAI (Rho, 0.46). Worse quality of life was observed in patients not doing physical activity, unemployed, and current smokers. Patients with higher disease activity had a significant poorer quality of life. Adjusting by age, sex and disease duration, unemployment, higher disease activity, disability, and the presence of depression were independently associated to worse quality of life. QOL-RA II demonstrated good construct validity, reproducibility, and reliability. It was easy to complete and calculate and does not require a license for its use, thus making it the optimal tool for assessing the quality of life in Spanish-speaking patients with RA.

Key Points

• The evaluation of quality of life is very important in patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis.

• Most of the questionnaires used to assess the quality of life require a license to use.

• QOL-RA II is a valid and simple questionnaire to evaluate the quality of life of patients with RA and does not require a license for its use.

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Funding

This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Section of Rheumatology, Instituto de Rehabilitación Psicofísica, Echeverría 955, 1429, Buenos Aires, Argentina

    Carolina Ayelen Isnardi, Emilce Edith Schneeberger, Dafne Capelusnik, María de los Ángeles Correa & Gustavo Citera

  2. Section of Rheumatology, Hospital General de Agudos José M. Penna, Buenos Aires, Argentina

    Romina Lim & María Hu

  3. Section of Rheumatology, Hospital General de Agudos José María Ramos Mejía, Buenos Aires, Argentina

    María Janina Tapia & Eduardo Kerzberg

  4. Hospital General de Agudos Dr. Cosme Argerich, Buenos Aires, Argentina

    Eliana Blanco & Federico Luján Benavidez

  5. Hospital Ángel C. Padilla, San Miguel de Tucumán, Argentina

    Luciana Gonzales Lucero & Ana Lucía Barbaglia

  6. Hospital Interzonal General de Agudos Petrona V. de Cordero, Buenos Aires, Argentina

    Marcela Bazzarelli

  7. Hospital San Antonio de Padua, Buenos Aires, Argentina

    Hernán Maldonado Ficco

  8. Hospital General de Agudos Dr. Enrique Tornú, Buenos Aires, Argentina

    Silvana Pérez

  9. Hospital Provincial de Rosario, Rosario, Argentina

    Claudia Hartvig

  10. San Nicolás, Buenos Aires, Argentina

    Mariana Salcedo

Authors
  1. Carolina Ayelen Isnardi
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  2. Emilce Edith Schneeberger
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  3. Dafne Capelusnik
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  4. María de los Ángeles Correa
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  5. Romina Lim
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  6. María Hu
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  7. María Janina Tapia
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  8. Eduardo Kerzberg
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  9. Eliana Blanco
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  10. Federico Luján Benavidez
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  11. Luciana Gonzales Lucero
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  12. Ana Lucía Barbaglia
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  13. Marcela Bazzarelli
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  14. Hernán Maldonado Ficco
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  15. Silvana Pérez
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  16. Claudia Hartvig
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  17. Mariana Salcedo
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  18. Gustavo Citera
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Gustavo Citera.

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Appendix I. QOL-RA II questionnaire: English and Spanish versions

Appendix I. QOL-RA II questionnaire: English and Spanish versions

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Isnardi, C.A., Schneeberger, E.E., Capelusnik, D. et al. A useful tool to assess quality of LIFE in rheumatoid arthritis patients that does not require a license: QOL-RA II. Clin Rheumatol 39, 3309–3315 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10067-020-05139-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10067-020-05139-8

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