Development and validation of a quality of life measurement for chronic skin disorders in french: VQ-Dermato. The RéseaudEpidémiolo gie en Dermatologie.
BACKGROUND
Quality of life (QoL) assessment is crucial to assess the severity of dermatological diseases.


OBJECTIVE
To construct and validate the first dermatology-specific instrument in French.


METHODS
Items were generated from the interview of patients. The final self-administered questionnaire, the VQ-Dermato, included 28 questions. Validity in terms of content and construct, reliability in terms of reproducibility and internal consistency, responsiveness and acceptability were tested in a population of 231 patients with 12 categories of chronic skin disorders, who were recruited and followed in hospital and private practice in France.


RESULTS
Item analysis revealed that discrimination indices were high. After factor analysis, 7 dimensions were retained, which accounted for 72% of the total variance. Cronbach's alpha coefficient ranged between 0. 67 and 0.88. A strong correlation was found between dimensions of the VQ-Dermato and the corresponding dimensions of the SF36. Scores were significantly different in each category of chronic skin disease and significantly higher when there was a function restriction or when the lesions were visible to others. The scale was proven to be stable by test-retest correlation. The VQ-Dermato was more responsive to clinical improvement after a 1- or 2-month treatment than the SF36. The percentage of missing responses was under 10 and the time for completing the questionnaire always under 13 min.


CONCLUSIONS
The VQ-Dermato is the first valid and reliable dermatology-specific QoL instrument in French, and the first based on the concept of 'chronic skin disorders'. It is acceptable for routine use and has a better responsiveness than a general health instrument.
Grob
J J
JJ
Service de Dermatologie, Hôpital Sainte-Marguerite, CHU Timone, Marseille, France. jgrob@mail.ap-hm.fr
Auquier
P
P
Martin
S
S
Lançon
C
C
Bonerandi
J J
JJ
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002908:Chronic Disease; D003627:Data Interpretation, Statistical; D005260:Female; D005602:France / Q000453:epidemiology; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011788:Quality of Life; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012647:Self-Assessment; D012871:Skin Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires / Q000592:standards