Psychometric and Clinimetric Validity of the 31-Item Rhinosinusitis Outcome Measure (RSOM-31)

Abstract

Descriptions of rhinosinusitis (RS) patients and evaluation of treatment effectiveness are currently hindered by the lack of a valid measure of health status and quality of life. The RSOM contains 31 RS-specific items (e.g., runny nose, cough, facial pain/pressure), grouped into 7 domains (nasal, eye, sleep, ear, and general symptoms; practical problems, and emotional consequences), and was created from discussions with RS patients. Two categorical rating scales were selected for patients to indicate the Magnitude and Importance of each item. The RSOM score is calculated as the sum of the Magnitude X Importance scores. The goal of this project was to validate the RSOM-31. In 142 patients who completed the RSOM, the average age was 45 and there were 86 women. The average total RSOM score was 5.8 (0.8—15.1 = good—bad). The domains most affected were sleep (7.7), general problems (6.4), nasal (6.3), and emotional (6.2). The RSOM score correlated significantly with an overall global quality of life question (r = 0.36); and the Vitality (r = 0.50), General Health (r = 0.47), Social Functioning (r = 0.46), and Role-Physical (r = 0.41) sub-scales of the Medical Outcomes Study Short-Form 36. The average total RSOM score decreased over time (indicating improvement) and was correlated with the patient's assessment of their response to treatment (F Value 6.49; P < 0.0001). This study demonstrates that the 31-item RSOM is a valid measure of RS health status and quality of life.

Chronic rhinosinusitis and nasal polyps: the role of generic and specific questionnaires on assessing its impact on patient’s quality of life

“…The product of the magnitude and importance scores creates the symptom-impact score, a unique patient-specific score. The severity and importance scales, however, make it somewhat difficult for the patient to fill the questionnaire (35).…”

Aeroallergen Sensitization Influences Quality of Life and Comorbidities in Patients with Nasal Polyposis

“…Skin-prick tests were performed with locally adapted batteries of aeroallergens that at least should include house-dust mites, molds, pollens, epithelia, and cockroach. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug NSAID hypersensitivity diagnostic criteria were those specified in the EPO 3 19 is a self-administered questionnaire specific for rhinosinusitis, which can be answered in ϳ20 minutes. The RSOM-31 consists of 31 items classified into seven domains (nasal, eye, ear, sleep, general, emotional, and functional).…”

Avaliação da qualidade de vida após sinusectomia endoscópica para rinossinusite crônica

“…There are other validated instruments to assess the impact of nasal/sinus complaints upon QoL. The RSOM-31 (Rhinosinusitis outcome measure) contains 31 questions divided into seven subsets; however, the scale onto which the answers have been placed make it somewhat hard to answer 29 . The RSDI (Rhinosinusitis Disability Index) relates nasal/sinus symptoms to specific limitations placed upon daily life activities through 30 questions in a similar fashion to the RSOM 30 .…”