Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Changes in quality of life in chronic psychiatric patients: A comparison between EuroQol (EQ-5D) and WHOQoL

  • Published:
Quality of Life Research Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

It has often been postulated that simple, short questionnaires are unable to reflect complex changes in well-being of individuals with chronic psychiatric disorders. To investigate these assumptions we included two recently developed instruments to measure quality of life (the WHOQoL-Bref and the EuroQoL EQ-5D) in a randomised control trial (RCT) in which two treatment conditions were compared. Aims of the study were to assess the sensitivity and validity of these quality of life (QoL)-instruments, to establish their relationship and to examine the predictors of changes in QoL. Subjective changes in QoL were measured on three assessments waves in a period of 18 months and compared to objective changes in psychopathology and social functioning in a sample of 76 chronic schizophrenic patients who participated in the RCT. Results indicated that both WHOQoL-Bref and EuroQoL EQ-5D are capable of detecting changes in QoL over time in physical and psychological well-being. The instruments partly measure the same aspects of QoL, indicated by 50% common variance on total scores. Reduction of positive psychotic symptoms appeared to be the most important factor in improving QoL. The weighted TTO-score of EuroQoL-5D, which is often used as an index in economic evaluations of health care, did however not correspond with these changes, which indicates that it is less sensitive to changes in social and psychological well-being. It’s use as the core measure in (economic) health evaluation in the field of psychiatry therefore seems less appropriate.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • T Struttmann M Fabro G Romieu et al. (1999) ArticleTitleQuality-of-life assessment in the old using the WHOQOL 100: Differences between patients with senile dementia and patients with cancer. Int Psychogeriatr 11 273–279

    Google Scholar 

  • M Atkinson S Zibin H Chuang (1997) ArticleTitleCharacterizing quality of life among patients with chronic mental illness: A critical examination of the self-report methodology. Am J Psychiatry 154 99–105 Occurrence Handle1:STN:280:ByiC2c3psFE%3D Occurrence Handle8988966

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • FB Dickerson NB Ringel F Parente (1998) ArticleTitleSubjective quality of life in out patients with schizophrenia: Clinical and utilization correlates. Acta Psychiatr Scand 98 IssueID2 124–127

    Google Scholar 

  • JW Kasckow E Twamley JJ Mulchahey et al. (2001) ArticleTitleHealth related quality of well being in chronically hospitalized patients with schizophrenia: Comparison with matched outpatients. Psychiatr Res 103 IssueID1 69–78

    Google Scholar 

  • S Priebe UU Roeder-Wanner W Kaiser (2000) ArticleTitleQuality of life in first-admitted schizophrenia patients: A follow-up study. Psychol Med 30 IssueID1 225–230 Occurrence Handle10.1017/S0033291798008253 Occurrence Handle1:STN:280:DC%2BD3c7osFalug%3D%3D Occurrence Handle10722193

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • JD Huppert KA Weiss R Lim S Pratt TE Smith (2001) ArticleTitleQuality of life in schizophrenia: Contributions of anxiety and depression. Schizophr Res 51 171–180 Occurrence Handle10.1016/S0920-9964(99)00151-6 Occurrence Handle1:STN:280:DC%2BD3MvnsFGmtg%3D%3D Occurrence Handle11518637

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • CC Bow-Thomas DI Velligan AL Miller J Olsen (1999) ArticleTitlePredicting quality of life from symptomatology in schizophrenia at exacerbation and stabilization. Psychiatry Res 86 IssueID2 131–142

    Google Scholar 

  • M Ritsner (2003) ArticleTitlePredicting changes in domain-specific quality of life of schizophrenia patients. J Nerv Ment Dis 191 IssueID5 287–294

    Google Scholar 

  • WHOQoL group. Development of the World Health Organization WHOQoL BREF Quality of Life scale. Psychol Med 1998; 28: 551–558.

    Google Scholar 

  • EuroQoL group. EuroQoL – a new facility for the measurement of health related quality of life. Health Policy 1990; 16: 199–208.

    Google Scholar 

  • JA Jenner FJ Nienhuis D Wiersma G Van de Willige (2004) ArticleTitleHallucination focused Integrative Treatment improves burden, control, and symptoms in schizophrenia patients with drug-resistant hallucinations, a RCT. Schizophr Bull 30 IssueID1 127–139

    Google Scholar 

  • D Wiersma JA Jenner FJ Nienhuis G Van de Willige (2004) ArticleTitleHallucination focused integrative treatment improves quality of life in schizophrenia patients. Acta Psychiatr Scand 109 194–201

    Google Scholar 

  • AD Stant EM TenVergert H Groen et al. (2003) ArticleTitleCost-effectiveness of the HIT programme in patients with schizophrenia and persistent auditory hallucinations. Acta Psychiatr Scand 107 361–368

    Google Scholar 

  • JA Jenner (2002) ArticleTitleHIT: An integrative treatment for patients with persistent auditory hallucinations. Psychiatr Serv 53 897–898

    Google Scholar 

  • DG Altman (1995) Practical Statistics for Medical Research. Chapman &Hall London

    Google Scholar 

  • World Health Organization. WHO SCAN: Schedules for Clinical Assessment in Neuropsychiatry. Geneve, 1992.

  • Carroll RE O’ K Smith M Couston JA Cossar PC Hayes (2000) ArticleTitleA comparison of the WHOQOL-100 and the WHOQOL-BREF in detecting change in quality of life following liver transplantation. Qual Life Res 9 121–124

    Google Scholar 

  • R Brooks (1996) ArticleTitleEuroQoL: The current state of play. Health Policy 37 53–72 Occurrence Handle10.1016/0168-8510(96)00822-6 Occurrence Handle1:STN:280:BymB1c7mt1Q%3D Occurrence Handle10158943

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • P Kind P Dolan C Gudex A Williams (1998) ArticleTitleVariations in population health status: Results from a United Kingdom national questionnaire survey. Br Med J 316 736–741

    Google Scholar 

  • P Dolan C Gudex P Kind A Williams (1996) ArticleTitleThe time trade-off method: Results from a general population study. Health Econ 5 141–154

    Google Scholar 

  • Kay SR, Opler LA, Lindenmayer JP. The Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS): Rationale and standardisation. Br J Psychiatry Suppl 1989; 59–67.

  • JP Lindenmayer S Grochowski RB Hyman (1995) ArticleTitleFive factor model of schizophrenia: Replication across samples. Schizophr Res 14 229–234

    Google Scholar 

  • G Haddock J McCarron N Tarrier EB Faragher (1999) ArticleTitleScales to measure dimensions of hallucinations and delusions: The psychotic symptom rating scale (PSYRATS). Psychol Med 29 879–889

    Google Scholar 

  • D Wiersma Ad Jong HJM Kraaijkamp J Ormel (1990) GSDS-II: The Groningen Social Disabilities Schedule, Second Version. Department of Psychiatry, University of Groningen The Netherlands

    Google Scholar 

  • TL Patterson RM Kaplan DV Jeste (1999) ArticleTitleMeasuring the effect of treatment on quality of life in patients with schizophrenia: Focus on utility-based measures. CNS Drugs 12 49–64

    Google Scholar 

  • M Doyle S Flanagan S Browne M Clarke D Lydon E Larkin (1999) ArticleTitleSubjective and external assessments of quality of life in schizophrenia: Relationship to insight. Acta Psychiatr Scand 99 466–472

    Google Scholar 

  • K Burstrom M Johannesson F Diderichsen (2001) ArticleTitleHealth- related quality of life by disease and socio-economic group in the general population in Sweden. Health Policy 55 51–69

    Google Scholar 

  • G Hawthorne J Richardson N Day H McNeil (2000) Validation of the WHOQoL-BREF. Centre for Health Program Evaluation Melbourne

    Google Scholar 

  • X Badia A Casado JA Sacristan JC Gomez KJ Gregor S Gavart (Eds) (2000) the EFESO Study Group. Antipsychotic Treatment and Changes in Health Related Quality of Life in Schizophrenic Patients using the EQ-5D. Davos The 10th Biennial Winter Workshop on Schizophrenia Switzerland

    Google Scholar 

  • JD Huppert TE Smith (2001) ArticleTitleLongitudinal analysis of subjective quality of life in schizophrenia: Anxiety as the best symptom predictor. J Nerv Ment Dis 189 IssueID10 669–675

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychiatry, University of Groningen, P.O. Box 30001, 9700 RB, Groningen, the Netherlands

    Gerard van de Willige, Durk Wiersma, Fokko J. Nienhuis & Jack A. Jenner

Authors
  1. Gerard van de Willige
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Durk Wiersma
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Fokko J. Nienhuis
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Jack A. Jenner
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Durk Wiersma.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

de Willige, G.v., Wiersma, D., Nienhuis, F.J. et al. Changes in quality of life in chronic psychiatric patients: A comparison between EuroQol (EQ-5D) and WHOQoL. Qual Life Res 14, 441–451 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11136-004-0689-y

Download citation

  • Accepted:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11136-004-0689-y

Keywords

Search

Navigation