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Self-administered questionnaire developed to detect RA flares
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A self-administered questionnaire to detect rheumatoid arthritis flares between physician visits has been validated, according to a recently published study.
Previously, the researchers developed an 11-question survey to detect rheumatoid arthritis (RA) flares in the 3 months since the last rheumatologist visit. To validate the questionnaire, the investigators performed a longitudinal, prospective study.
They documented the content and construct validity by factor analysis, as well as the convergent validity by Pearson correlation with routine assessment of patient index data (RAPID3), health assessment questionnaire (HAQ), RA impact of disease (RAID) score and DAS28. They also documented the reliability as measured by the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) and Bland and Altman plot, and they documented the feasibility of use. They examined 138 patients from 13 centers and collected questionnaires at baseline, at 3 months and every week in between for RAPID3. Of the patients, 81.9% were women and the mean age was 57.4 years.
Investigators found the questionnaire had good content and construct validity. They observed a substantial floor effect, but no ceiling effect.
The questionnaire score correlated with DAS28 (r = 0.63), RAID (r = 0.8), RAPID (r = 0.77) and HAQ (r = 0.53). The ICC for reliability was 0.94.
The researchers concluded their self-administered questionnaire is a valuable instrument to detect RA flare between physician visits. – by Will Offit
Disclosure: The researchers reported no relevant financial disclosures.
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