Slovenian Cross-Cultural Adaptation and Validation of Health-Related Quality of Life Measures for Chronic Otitis Media (COMQ-12), Vertigo (DHI, NVI) and TINNITUS (THI)

Polish version of the COMQ-12 questionnaire, a new validated tool for the assessment of the quality of life in patients with chronic otitis media

<b><br>Introduction:</b> The COMQ-12 questionnaire is a tool to assess the quality of life in patients with chronic otitis media in many countries. The questionnaire consists of 12 questions: seven relating to the severity of symptoms, two regarding the impact of the disease on lifestyle and work, two concerning the impact on the need for healthcare, and one is a general question. Each question is rated on a scale from 0 to 5.</br> <b><br>Aim:</b> To present the validation process and the final version of the Polish version of the COMQ-12 questionnaire.</br> <b><br>Material and methods:</b> The Polish version of the COMQ-12 questionnaire was prepared based on an independent translation of the English version by three physicians (two otolaryngology specialists and one physician in the process of specialization in otolaryngology). The questionnaire was validated in a study including 60 participants: 30 patients with chronic otitis media and 30 volunteers without a history of middle ear diseases or hearing disorders. Each participant was asked to complete the COMQ-12 questionnaire twice at an interval of 4 weeks apart. The internal consistency, reliability, and construct validity of the questionnaire were analyzed using Cronbach's alpha and McDonald's omega coefficients, Spearman's rho correlation coefficient, and the Mann-Whitney test, respectively.</br> <b><br>Results:</b> High internal consistency, reliability, and construct validity of the Polish version of the COMQ-12 questionnaire were shown in the course of statistical analysis. The overall internal consistency was 0.95 and 0.97 as assessed by Cronbach's alpha and McDonald's omega coefficients, respectively. Spearman's rho correlation coefficient was above 0.89 for each question. Statistically significant differences in the COMQ-12 total scores were obtained between patients with chronic otitis media and the control group.</br> <b><br>Conclusions:</b> The Polish version of the COMQ-12 questionnaire can be a valuable clinical tool for the assessment of the quality of life in patients suffering from chronic otitis media.</br>.

A Questionnaire for Rating Health-related Quality of Life

Background

Translations of instruments for measuring quality of life developed in certain, mostly more developed, parts of the world usually do not cover regionally specific aspects of health-related quality of life, even after transcultural validation. The aim of this study was to develop and validate a reliable questionnaire in Serbian, Croatian, Bosnian, and Montenegrin languages suitable for measuring health-related quality of life in adults.

Methods

The study was of a cross-sectional type, assessing the reliability and validity of a newly developed questionnaire for measuring health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in adults residing in western Balkan states (WB-HRQoL). It was conducted on a sample of 489 adults from Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, and Montenegro, with a mean age of 52.2±14.4 years and a male/female ratio of 195/294 (39.9%/60.1%).

Result

The definitive version of the WB-HRQoL scale with 19 items showed very good reliability, with Cronbach's alpha 0.905. The scale was temporally stable, and satisfactory results were obtained for divergent and convergent validity tests. Exploratory factorial analysis brought to the surface four domains of health-related quality of life, namely the physical, psychical, social, and environmental.

Conclusion

The WB-HRQoL scale is a reliable and valid generic instrument for measuring HRQoL that takes into account the cultural specifics of the western Balkan region.

Autologous Platelet- and Extracellular Vesicle-Rich Plasma Is an Effective Treatment Modality for Chronic Postoperative Temporal Bone Cavity Inflammation: Randomized Controlled Clinical Trial

Purpose

To determine the efficacy of autologous platelet- and extracellular vesicle-rich plasma (PVRP) to treat chronic postoperative temporal bone cavity inflammation (CPTBCI) after exhausting surgical and standard conservative therapies.

Materials and Methods

Patients were randomly allocated to treatment with PVRP (PVRP group) or standard conservative methods (control group) in a setting of four once-monthly checkups and subsequent follow-up. The treatment outcome was measured with the Chronic Otitis Media Questionnaire-12 (COMQ-12), CPTBCI focus surface area, and CPTBCI symptom-free time after the fourth checkup.

Results

Eleven patients from each group completed the trial; 95% of patients suffered from chronically discharging mastoid cavity (the type of CPTBCI). Within four checkups, the COMQ-12 score decreased statistically significantly in the PVRP group (p < 0.001) but not in the control group (p = 0.339). The CPTBCI foci surface area decreased statistically significantly between the first and second checkups (p < 0.0005) but not between other checkups (p > 0.05) in the PVRP group. No statistically significant differences in CPTBCI foci surface area were detected between checkups in the control group (p = 0.152). Nine patients from the PVRP group and three patients from the control group were CPTBCI symptom-free at the fourth checkup. The median symptom-free time was 9.2 months (95% CI [7.4, 11.9]) in the PVRP group. Cumulatively, 49% of patients in the PVRP group remained CPTBCI symptom-free for 12.7 months after the fourth checkup.

Conclusion

Autologous PVRP represents a novel additional and successful treatment modality for a chronically discharging radical mastoid cavity when the surgical and standard conservative treatment methods have been exhausted.

Trial Number

https://clinicaltrials.gov (NCT04281901).