ThyPROgr: the Greek edition of the ThyPRO questionnaires for patients with benign thyroid diseases

Thyroid disease‐specific quality of life questionnaires ‐ A systematic review

Introduction

Thyroid diseases are very common and rarely life‐threatening. One of the main therapeutic goals is an improvement in quality of life, making it important to measure in clinical and research settings. The aim of this systematic review is to provide an overview of the currently available thyroid‐specific quality of life questionnaires with regard to their validation quality in order to make recommendations for clinical use with a special focus on German questionnaires.

Methods

A systematic literature search was performed in Pubmed, Google Scholar and the Cochrane Library. A total of 904 studies were identified. After excluding duplicates, non‐English‐ or German‐language texts, full texts that were not freely available and studies with irrelevant content, 64 studies reporting on 16 different questionnaires were included in the analysis.

Results

Four questionnaires concerned benign thyroid diseases (ThyPRO, ThyPRO‐39, Thy‐R‐HRQoL and Thy‐D‐QOL), six malignant thyroid diseases (THYCA‐QoL, ThyCa‐HRLQOL, EORTC‐Thy34, MADSI‐Thy, QOL‐Thyroid and ThyCAT), and six endocrine orbitopathy (GO‐QOL, GO‐QLS, TED‐QOL, STED‐QOL, TAO‐QoL and Ox‐TED). Only five questionnaires were at least developed, if not validated, in German, and five were developed in more than two languages.

Conclusions

ThyPRO and the ThyPRO‐39 are the best‐evaluated questionnaires for benign thyroid diseases. Alternatively, in hypothyroid patients, the adequately validated Thy‐D‐QoL can be used. For malignant thyroid diseases, the choice should be made individually, as all six questionnaires (THYCA‐QoL, ThyCA‐HRQOL, EORTC‐Thy34, MDASI‐Thy, QOL‐Thyroid and ThyCAT) have different strengths and weaknesses. The GO‐QOL is the best‐validated questionnaire in endocrine orbitopathy. However, the TED‐QOL is also suitable as a short‐screening questionnaire for these patients.

Validity and reliability of the German version of the shortened thyroid-specific quality of life questionnaire (ThyPRO-39de)

OBJECTIVES

Validation of a German version of the ThyPRO-39 questionnaire for quality of life (QoL) in patients with benign thyroid diseases.

DESIGN

Internal consistency, retest reliability, and validity were to be assessed in a test-retest study.

METHODS

The ThyPRO-39 was translated based on standard methodology. A sample of 98 patients with benign thyroid diseases was tested with the ThyPRO-39de and the generic EuroQol 5D-5L. Forty-four patients with stable symptoms after 2 weeks formed the repeated measures sample. Cronbach's alpha was calculated for the ThyPRO-39de composite score and for each disease-specific scale. Intraclass correlations between the original and the repeated measures sample were calculated for each scale as well as Pearson correlations between various ThyPRO scales and the EuroQol. T-tests were used to test for differences in the goiter and hyperthyroid symptom scales between relevant patient groups and other patients.

RESULTS

Internal consistency was between satisfactory and good, except for two scales (tiredness and cosmetic complaints/appearance). The test-retest correlation was between 0.62 and 0.8 for most scales, but below 0.5 for two scales (tiredness and impaired social life). There were significant correlations between the EuroQol index score and most aspects of the ThyPRO-39de. Only the hyperthyroid symptoms scale was specific for the relevant patient group (Graves' disease).

CONCLUSION

The ThyPRO-39de may be recommended for use in clinical and research settings, especially with regards to the composite score. However, the underlying thyroid disease should always be kept in mind when interpreting the test results. A larger sample would be needed to implement further improvements.

Psychometric properties of the thyroid-specific quality of life questionnaire ThyPRO in Singaporean patients with Graves' disease

BACKGROUND

Graves' disease is the most common cause of hyperthyroidism. It results in accelerated tissue metabolism with multi-organ involvement ranging from cardiovascular to neuropsychological function. This results in a negative impact on the quality of life (QOL) of the individual patient. We aim to evaluate the psychometric properties of ThyPRO, a Thyroid-related Patient Reported Outcome questionnaire, and validate its use in our multi-ethnic Asian patients with Graves' hyperthyroidism.

METHODS

Forty-seven consecutive Graves' hyperthyroidism patients answered the ThyPRO questionnaire at baseline and at 4 months after treatment initiation. Data were recorded for thyroid related symptoms and signs, thyroid function tests and thyroid volume. We analyzed the internal consistency using Cronbach's alpha, construct validity by evaluating relationship between clinical variables and ThyPRO scales, ceiling and floor effects, and responsiveness of ThyPRO to treatment based on Cohen's effect size.

RESULTS

Correlations between individual scale scores and free thyroxine concentrations were moderate and statistically significant: 0.21-0.64 (p <  0.05). There was high internal consistency between the items in this instrument, Cronbach's alpha > 0.7 for all scales. ThyPRO was responsive to the changes in QOL after treatment (Effect Size: 0.20-0.77) in 9 of the 14 scales including the hyperthyroid symptoms and psychosocial scales (Tiredness, Cognitive complaints, Anxiety, Emotional susceptibility, Impact on Social, Daily and Sex life).

CONCLUSION

This study provides evidence that ThyPRO has satisfactory measurement properties in hyperthyroid Graves' disease patients in Singapore population with the potential to complement clinical care.

A Clinical Trial for the Identification of Metabolic Biomarkers in Hashimoto's Thyroiditis and in Psoriasis: Study Protocol

Hashimoto's thyroiditis and psoriasis are inflammatory disorders that significantly impact patients' quality of life, stressing the need for novel biomarkers of early diagnosis. This randomized clinical trial (NCT04693936) aims to identify Hashimoto's thyroiditis' and psoriasis' metabolic biomarkers and to investigate the effect of environmental factors on the disease-related metabolic imprint and quality of life. Patients with Hashimoto's thyroiditis, patients with psoriasis, and healthy individuals aged 18-60 will be recruited, enrolled according to eligibility criteria (medical history, clinical thyroid markers and the PASI score) and randomized to two groups. The intervention group will receive a combination of nutraceuticals for 6 months as part of a Mediterranean diet, and the control group will follow their usual diet. Data will be collected at baseline and the end of the study, including metabolite levels, lifestyle and anthropometric measurements, adherence to the Mediterranean diet (through the Mediterranean Diet Score) and disease-specific quality of life (through the Thyroid Patient Report Outcome for Hashimoto's group, and the Dermatology Life Quality Index for the psoriasis group). This study will investigate metabolic biomarkers and related changes in Hashimoto's thyroiditis and psoriasis and evaluate the association of metabolic changes with dietary factors and quality of life.