title: Single-item vs multiple-item measures of health-related quality of life.
abstract: Many survey instruments measure health-related quality of life. Researchers can choose from instruments ranging in length from one to several hundred items. A small sample of 35 chronically ill adults self-administered the Short-form General Health Survey of the Medical Outcomes Study, a 20-item health-related quality-of-life measure with established reliability and validity. One specific item on the MOS questionnaire can serve as a single-item measure of health-related quality of life. This one item correlated positively and significantly with the over-all score for health-related quality of life. The results of this analysis support the use of this single-item measure of health-related quality of life when multiple-item instruments are not suitable due to limitations of resources or sample size.
authors.affiliation: Pharmacy Administration Division, University of Texas, Austin.
authors.forename: K A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Cunny
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Perri
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002908:Chronic Disease / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006302:Health Services Research; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010349:Patient Compliance / Q000523:psychology; D010555:Personality Inventory; D011788:Quality of Life; D012803:Sick Role