Development of a quality-of-life assessment for the allergic child or teenager with multisystem allergic disease

Abstract

Background: Health-related quality of life (HRQOL) questionnaires currently being used to evaluate allergic disease are organ-specific. They therefore fail to take account of the systemic aspects of allergic disease.

Objective: To develop and validate a pediatric HRQOL questionnaire for allergic disease (Pediatric Allergic Disease Quality of Life Questionnaire, PADQLQ) that encapsulates problems related to the eyes, ears, nose, lungs, skin, emotions, and everyday activities.

Methods: In the development phase, 77 subjects (6 to 16 years of age), with seasonal or perennial allergic problems, were asked how much they were bothered by each different area of HRQOL impairment. The highest scoring areas were used to construct the PADQLQ. In the validation phase of the study, 36 subjects (8 to 16 years of age) with seasonal allergic rhinoconjunctivitis, seasonal allergic asthma, and/or cutaneous manifestations of grass pollen allergy were assessed before and during the pollen season.

Results: The PADQLQ contains 26 questions. In addition to standard symptoms (eg, rhinitis), it incorporates multiorgan symptoms that are usually overlooked (eg, hearing problems). The PADQLQ demonstrated good cross-sectional and longitudinal validity, showing a high degree of correlation with symptom scores and quality of life as measured by a visual analogue scale and two-organ specific questionnaires. The PADQLQ showed good within-subject reliability and a small minimal important difference (0.33; 95% CI, 0.11 to 0.54 on a 7-point scale).

Conclusions: The PADQLQ has good cross-sectional and longitudinal validity, making it a potentially useful outcome measure in the evaluation of systemic treatments such as antihistamine medications and immunotherapy in children with multisystem allergic disease.