title: Psychometric properties of the quality of life questionnaire for children with CP.
abstract: This paper describes the development and psychometric properties of a condition-specific quality of life instrument for children with cerebral palsy (CP QOL-Child). A sample of 205 primary caregivers of children with CP aged 4 to 12 years (mean 8y 5mo) and 53 children aged 9 to 12 years completed the CP QOL-Child. The children (112 males, 93 females) were sampled across Gross Motor Function Classification System (GMFCS) levels (Level I=18%, II=28%, III=14%, IV=11%, V=27%). Primary caregivers also completed other measures of child health (Child Health Questionnaire; CHQ), QOL (KIDSCREEN), and functioning (GMFCS). Internal consistency ranged from 0.74 to 0.92 for primary caregivers and from 0.80 to 0.90 for child self-report. For primary caregivers, 2-week test-retest reliability ranged from 0.76 to 0.89. The validity of the CP QOL is supported by the pattern of correlations between CP QOL-Child scales with the CHQ, KIDSCREEN, and GMFCS. Preliminary statistics suggest that the child self-report questionnaire has acceptable psychometric properties. The questionnaire can be freely accessed at http://www.deakin.edu.ac/hmnbs/chase/cerebralpalsy/cp_qol_home.php.
authors.affiliation: Deakin University, Melbourne, Australia. elizabeth.waters@deakin.edu.au
authors.forename: Elizabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Waters
authors.forename: Elise
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Davis
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mackinnon
authors.forename: Roslyn
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Boyd
authors.forename: H Kerr
authors.initials: HK
authors.lastname: Graham
authors.forename: Sing
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kai Lo
authors.forename: Rory
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Wolfe
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Stevenson
authors.forename: Kristie
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Bjornson
authors.forename: Eve
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Blair
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Hoare
authors.forename: Ulrike
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Ravens-Sieberer
authors.forename: Dinah
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Reddihough
mesh_terms: D002547:Cerebral Palsy / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011594:Psychometrics; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires