title: Changes in quality-of-life after pacemaker implantation: responsiveness of the Aquarel questionnaire.
abstract: Before being introduced for widespread use, health status instruments should be evaluated for reliability, validity, and responsiveness to relevant clinical changes. In a previous study the validity and reliability of Aquarel, a disease-specific quality-of-life (QOL) questionnaire for pacemaker patients, were tested and found satisfactory. The purpose of this study was to assess the sensitivity to change in health of Aquarel. A cohort of 51 patients was assessed at baseline and at 4-6 weeks after pacemaker implantation. We compared the sensitivity to change over time on the Aquarel scores to the scores on the SF-36 using various techniques (t-test value, effect size, standard error of measurement). Using the 1-standard error of measurement (SEM) criterion for clinically relevant change, Aquarel seemed to provide better classification of patients compared to the SF-36 alone. This study supports the value of Aquarel as a disease-specific measure of QOL in pacemaker patients.
authors: Heart Lung Center, Utrecht, Department of Cardiology, St. Antonius Hospital, Nieuwegein, The Netherlands.
authors: M A
authors: MA
authors: Stofmeel
authors: M W
authors: MW
authors: Post
authors: J C
authors: JC
authors: Kelder
authors: D E
authors: DE
authors: Grobbee
authors: N M
authors: NM
authors: van Hemel
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010138:Pacemaker, Artificial; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011788:Quality of Life; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires