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. 2020 Jun 30;18(1):208.
doi: 10.1186/s12955-020-01347-7.

Quality of life assessment instruments for adults: a systematic review of population-based studies

Nila Patrícia Freire Pequeno  1   2 , Natália Louise de Araújo Cabral  3 , Dirce Maria Marchioni  4 , Severina Carla Vieira Cunha Lima  5 , Clélia de Oliveira Lyra  5
Affiliations

Quality of life assessment instruments for adults: a systematic review of population-based studies

Nila Patrícia Freire Pequeno et al. Health Qual Life Outcomes. .

Abstract

Background: Against a backdrop of population aging and improving survival rates for chronic noncommunicable diseases (CNCD), researchers are placing growing emphasis on health-related quality of life (HRQoL). The aim of this study was to identify the QoL assessment instruments used in population-based studies with adults conducted around the world.

Methods: A systematic review of original research published in all languages between 2008 and 2018 was conducted. Systematic reviews and meta-analyses were excluded.

Results: Sixty-three articles (38.1% conducted in the Americas) fitted the eligibility criteria. Based on the AHRQ checklist for cross-sectional studies and the Newcastle-Ottawa scale for cohort studies, methodological quality was shown to be fair in the majority of studies (55.6%) and good in 44.4%. The country with the highest number of publications was Brazil (20.6%). Twelve types of generic instruments and 11 specific instruments were identified. The generic instrument SF-36 was the most frequently used measure (33.3% of studies). In-home interviewing was exclusively used by 47.6% of the studies, while 39 studies (61.9%) reported the use of self-administered questionnaires. Over two-thirds of the studies (34.9%) used questionnaires to investigate the association between chronic diseases and/or associated factors.

Conclusions: It was concluded that the wide range of instruments and modes of questionnaire administration used by the studies may hinder comparisons between population groups with the same characteristics or needs. There is a lack of research on QoL and the factors affecting productive capacity. Studies of QoL in older persons should focus not only on the effects of disease and treatment, but also on the determinants of active aging and actions designed to promote it. Further research is recommended to determine which QoL instruments are best suited for population-based studies.

Keywords: Health-related quality of life; Population surveys; Quality of life; Systematic review.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Flowchart of the article selection process
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Methodological quality and study characteristics. References: a. Fair quality: [–42]. Good quality: [–70]. b [28]. and [57]. c. Americas [–, –, –49, 58], Europe [–, –, –, , –63], Asia [–, –, –, –69], Oceania [27, 56, 70] and Africa [42]. d. Brazil [, , –, , , , –45, 49], United States [, , , –32, 46, 47, 58], Korea [, , , , –68], Japan [24, 25, 53, 69], France [, –63], England [–21, 35], Germany [17, 23, 59], Denmark [37, 52, 60], Australia [27, 56, 70], Thailand [39, 54], United Kingdom [22, 57], Nigeria [42], Canada [28], Mexico [48], Laos [39], Spain [38], Sweden [36], and Switzerland [51]
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Themes related to quality of life assessment investigated by population-based studies conducted between 2008 and 2018 (n = 63 studies). *Others: Comparison of quality of life between ethnic minorities and nontraditional community, informal careers, family members of heavy drinker, social relationships, racial discrimination, and quality of life in general
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Focus of studies evaluating CNCD and associated factors (n = 22 studies)
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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