Assessment of the EuroQol 5-Dimension questionnaire for detection of clinically significant global health-related quality-of-life improvement following functional septorhinoplasty

Abstract

IMPORTANCE: Nasal airway obstruction is a common presenting complaint among patients in otolaryngology practices, and its treatment necessitates critical outcomes evaluation and cost-utility analysis. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the utility and applicability of the EuroQol 5-Dimension (EQ5D) global health-related quality-of-life (HRQoL) questionnaire for the assessment of clinical outcomes in functional septorhinoplasty. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: Prospective cohort study at a university-based tertiary medical center of patients undergoing functional septorhinoplasty for treatment of nasal obstruction. INTERVENTIONS: Patient demographic characteristics, operative intervention, and preoperative and postoperative Nasal Obstruction Symptom Evaluation (NOSE) and EQ5D scores were collected and analyzed between November 2013 and June 2016. MAINOUTCOMESAND MEASURES: Comparisonof preoperative and postoperative EQ5D and NOSE scores at 2 and 6 or more months following surgery (long-term follow-up). RESULTS: A total of 135 patients (56.3% male; mean [SD] age, 36.8 [14.8] years) completed EQ5D and NOSE surveys preoperatively and postoperatively, with mean (SD) follow-up of 5.82 (4.1) months. Of these, 117 completed the 2-month survey and 64 completed their last survey at 6 or more months. Baseline NOSE and EQ5D visual analog scale (VAS) scores were moderately correlated (r = -0.37, P