[Adaptation and validation of the Pediatric Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire (PAQLQ) in Brazilian asthmatic children and adolescents].
OBJECTIVE
To translate the Pediatric Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire (PAQLQ) into Portuguese and adapt it to the Brazilian context, for use in children and adolescents with asthma and to validate the adapted version of the questionnaire (PAQLQ-A).


METHODS
Children and adolescents (7 to 17 years old) with asthma answered the PAQLQ-A on admission and were assessed using a clinical severity score. According to this score, patients were classified as mild (> or = 2) or moderate/severe (< 2). They were reassessed on at least two occasions at an interval of 2 to 4 weeks. Furthermore, patients in whom asthma was properly controlled were classified as stable, and those in whom it could not be controlled, as unstable.


RESULTS
The reproducibility of the PAQLQ-A was evaluated in stable patients by comparing the mean domain scores: symptoms, emotions, activities, and the overall clinical severity score on two predefined occasions with an interval of 15 to 30 days in between. Responsiveness was evaluated among unstable patients. The mean domain scores and the overall score were different on both occasions, and so was the clinical severity score. The validity of the questionnaire was determined by the application of Cronbach's alpha reliability coefficient (alpha = 0.909).


CONCLUSIONS
The translation of the PAQLQ into Portuguese did not modify the framework of the original questionnaire; the PAQLQ-A is easy to use, with easy reproducibility, constituting a valuable instrument for the evaluation of the quality of life in children and adolescents with asthma.
La Scala
Cintia S K
CS
Departamento de Pediatria, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP. cintialascala@uol.com.br
Naspitz
Charles K
CK
Solé
Dirceu
D
D000293:Adolescent; D001249:Asthma / Q000523:psychology*; D001938:Brazil; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011788:Quality of Life; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014175:Translating