Release date:2020-07-17
Clinical & Experimental Allergy
[IF:5.158]
RAPP-children: a new tool for assessing quality of life in patients with asthma and rhinitis
DOI: 10.1111/CEA.13599
Abstract:
Background: RhinAsthma Patient Perspective (RAPP) is a short, validated questionnaire for assessing health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in adult patients with comorbid asthma and rhinitis, while a paediatric version is still not available.
Methods: RAPP-children was derived by combining RhinAsthma-children subscales into five unique items. At baseline (T0) and after 30 days (T1), 150 children (6-11 years) with comorbid asthma (predominantly intermittent or mild persistent) and rhinitis were given the following: RAPP-children, RhinAsthma-children, Paediatric Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire (PAQLQ, age >6 years), Paediatric Rhinoconjunctivitis Quality of Life Questionnaire (PRQLQ), Childhood Asthma Control Test (CACT), KiddyKindl® (age 6 years) or KidKindl® (age >6 years), and a Visual Analogue Scale for nasal symptoms (VAS). At the final visit, a Global Rating of Change (GRC) scale was administered. The approved study was registered on the central registration system ClinicalTrials.gov (ID: NCT03276416).
Results: RAPP-children fairly reproduced RhinAsthma-children scores (concordance correlation coefficients between 0.91 and 0.95). RAPP-children showed adequate convergent validity (absolute Spearman’s rho larger than 0.5 with PAQLQ, PRQLQ, CACT, KiddyKindl/KidKindl, and VAS), internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha >0.70), repeatability (intra-cluster correlation coefficient between 0.61 and 0.8) in the presence of clinical stability (GRC=0), discriminant validity (sensitivity to asthma control status and rhinitis severity), and sensitivity to symptom improvements (GRC>1). The minimal important difference (MID) was -20. Floor and ceiling effects were minimal. RAPP-children showed fair usability also in younger children (6-8 years).
Conclusion: RAPP-children is a valid, five-item questionnaire for assessing HRQoL in children aged 6 to 11 years with concomitant asthma and rhinitis. Although further investigation is required in moderate and severe asthmatics, this tool can be useful in clinical trials and in routine medical practice for improving the management of respiratory allergy in children.
First Author:
Salvatore Fasola
Correspondence:
Salvatore Fasola, Institute for Biomedical Research and Innovation, National Research Council, Palermo, Italy, Via Ugo La Malfa 153, 90146 Palermo, Italy.
All Authors:
Salvatore Fasolaa, Laura Montalbanoa, Giuliana Ferranteb, Giovanna Cilluffoa, Velia Maliziaa, Ilaria Baiardinic, Fulvio Braidod, Giovanni Viegia, Stefania La Gruttaa.
2020-07-06 Article