Evaluation of 3 quality of life measurement tools in patients with chronic heart failure

Objective The objectives of this study are to (1) Address issues related to selecting a quality of life (QOL) measuring tool; and (2) Present data from a pilot test comparing 3 QOL tools (Medical Outcomes Study Short Form-36 [SF-36], the Minnesota Living with Heart Failure Questionnaire [LHFQ], and a visual analogue scale).Design Descriptive comparative.Setting A Southern university-affiliated tertiary medical center outpatient heart failure clinic.Patients Thirty adults, randomly selected from those treated in a multidisciplinary, nurse practitioner-managed heart failure clinic.Results Significant correlations were found among the global or broader measures of QOL (visual analog scale and LHFQ Total score) and the component scores (LHFQ Emotional, LHFQ Physical, SF-36 Mental [MCS], and SF-36 Physical [PCS]), with the only exception being that of the LHFQ Total and the SF-36 PCS. Mental and physical components of QOL were not related within the SF-36 or between the SF-36 PCS and the LHFQ Emotional score. However, the emotional and physical scores were highly and significantly related within the LHFQ and between the SF-36 MCS and the LHFQ Physical score.Conclusions The SF-36 was better able to differentiate physical and emotional aspects of QOL in this sample. The LHFQ subscales may be less useful in QOL assessment than the total score.