Reproducibility and Reliability of the Quality of Life Questionnaire in Patients With Atrial Fibrillation

• Published in: Arquivos brasileiros de cardiologia 2016-03, Vol.106 (3), p.171-181
• Main Authors: Moreira, Rita Simone Lopes, Bassolli, Lucas, Coutinho, Enia, Ferrer, Paloma, Bragança, Érika Olivier, Carvalho, Antonio Carlos Camargo, de Paola, Angelo Amato, Luna Filho, Bráulio
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Atrial Fibrillation - psychology; CARDIAC & CARDIOVASCULAR SYSTEMS; Fatigue - psychology; Female; Fibrilação Atrial/psicologia; Humans; Longitudinal Studies; Male; Middle Aged; Observer Variation; Original; Perception; Psychometrics; Qualidade de Vida; Quality of Life; Questionários; Reproducibility of Results; Surveys and Questionnaires - standards
• ISSN: 0066-782X; 1678-4170; 1678-4170
• DOI: 10.5935/abc.20160026

Studies have shown the impact of atrial fibrillation (AF) on the patients' quality of life. Specific questionnaires enable the evaluation of relevant events. We previously developed a questionnaire to assess the quality of life of patients with AF (AFQLQ version 1), which was reviewed in this study, and new domains were added. To demonstrate the reproducibility of the AFQLQ version 2 (AFQLQ v.2), which included the domains of fatigue, illness perception and well-being. We applied 160 questionnaires (AFQLQ v.2 and SF-36) to 40 patients, at baseline and 15 days after, to measure inter- and intraobserver reproducibility. The analysis of quality of life stability was determined by test-retest, applying the Bartko intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). Internal consistency was assessed by Cronbach's alpha test. The total score of the test-retest (n = 40) had an ICC of 0.98 in the AFQLQ v.2, and of 0.94 in the SF36. In assessing the intra- and interobserver reproducibility of the AFQLQ v.2, the ICC reliability was 0.98 and 0.97, respectively. The internal consistency had a Cronbach's alpha coefficient of 0.82, compatible with good agreement of the AFQLQ v.2. The AFQLQ v.2 performed better than its previous version. Similarly, the domains added contributed to make it more comprehensive and robust to assess the quality of life of patients with AF.