Assessment of quality of life among patients with sinonasal disease as determined by an Internet survey based on the Rhinosinusitis Disability Index

Abstract

We conducted a survey to measure patient quality of life with the Rhinosinusitis Disability Index adapted for the Internet. Our target population was patients who were seeking information on sinonasal disease on the World Wide Web. Usable responses were obtained from 896 patients with self-diagnosed sinonasal disease. According to the survey responses, patients with chronic rhinosinusitis were significantly more bothered by their condition than were patients with allergic rhinitis. Also, women were significantly more impaired by recurrent acute sinusitis and chronic rhinosinusitis than were men. Our findings are consistent with the results of previous surveys conducted by means other than the Internet. This project represents the first quality-of-life survey of an unsolicited group of individuals with sinonasal disease. We believe that use of the Internet will allow researchers to obtain larger patient populations than is now typical with traditional means of survey dissemination.