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Item reduction of the Wisconsin Upper Respiratory Symptom Survey (WURSS-21) leads to the WURSS-11

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Abstract

Purpose

To develop a shorter version of the Wisconsin Upper Respiratory Symptom Survey (WURSS-21), a self-report questionnaire for evaluating daily symptoms and functional impairments during acute respiratory illness (ARI).

Methods

WURSS-21 data were retrieved from 4 studies (n = 1167) spanning the years 2002–2010. Similar methodologies were employed among these studies. Degree of missingness, ceiling/floor effects, and exploratory (EFA) and confirmatory (CFA) factor analyses were investigated and used to guide item retention. Stability of the reduced WURSS was evaluated across the first 3 days of ARI.

Results

Degree of missingness was <1 % and appeared to be completely at random. Seven WURSS items with >30 % of ratings of zero (floor effects) were eliminated. Cross-loading items (head congestion, sleep well and breathe easily) were excluded following EFA on subset-1. Subsequent CFA using subset-2 showed satisfactory indices of fit. The reduced WURSS-11 instrument demonstrated 3 dimensions of 3 items each and was stable across 3 days of illness. The indicated dimensions (items) include nasal (runny nose, plugged nose, sneezing), throat (cough, sore throat, scratchy throat), and quality of life (feeling tired, think clearly, accomplish daily activities).

Conclusion

The WURSS-11 has similar dimensional structure as the WURSS-21. This shorter version may reduce the time and burden required for completing the survey.

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Acknowledgments

Data analyzed here come from several separate studies supported by: (1) Patient-Oriented Career Development Grant (K23 AT00051-01) from the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) at the National Institutes of Health; (2) Career development grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Generalist Physician Scholars Program used for project analysis; (3) Clinical Research Feasibility Funds (CReFF) award from the NIH-funded University of Wisconsin-General Clinical Research Center (MO1 RR03186); (4) 1R01AT001428 Placebo: Physician or Pill? A randomized trial in a common cold model (NIH NCCAM); (5) 1R01AT004313 Meditation and Exercise for Prevention of Acute Respiratory Infection (NIH NCCAM); (6) K24AT006543 Midcareer Investigator Award (NIH NCCAM). Additional support include (7) National Research Service Award (T32HP10010) from the Health Resources and Services Administration; and (8) Grant 1UL1RR025011 from the Clinical and Translational Sciences Award program of the National Center for Research Resources, National Institutes of Health.

Conflict of interest

The WURSS-11 will be free of charge for educational, non-profit, and public interest work, but will be licensed for commercial or for-profit use by the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF). Chidi Obasi, Roger Brown, and Bruce Barrett have transferred copyright of the WURSS-11 to WARF and may receive author share royalties from such commercial licensing, but have no other interest conflicts. See http://www.fammed.wisc.edu/research/external-funded/wurss for registration and licensing information. All authors contributed significantly and approved the final version of this manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Family Medicine, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1100 Delaplaine Ct., Madison, WI, 53715, USA

    Chidi N. Obasi & Bruce P. Barrett

  2. Design and Statistics Unit, Schools of Nursing, Medicine and Public Health, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA

    Roger L. Brown

Authors
  1. Chidi N. Obasi
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  2. Roger L. Brown
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  3. Bruce P. Barrett
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Correspondence to Chidi N. Obasi.

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Obasi, C.N., Brown, R.L. & Barrett, B.P. Item reduction of the Wisconsin Upper Respiratory Symptom Survey (WURSS-21) leads to the WURSS-11. Qual Life Res 23, 1293–1298 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11136-013-0561-z

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