Key result
FEW16 questionnaire demonstrates good reliability for assessing physical well-being in HF patients.
Why the study?
Physical well-being is an essential component of quality of life in heart failure patients, but validated tools to assess it are needed.
Is the FEW16 questionnaire a valid and reliable tool for assessing physical well-being in patients with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction?
Observational (n=127)
Is the FEW16 questionnaire a valid and reliable tool for assessing physical well-being in patients with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction?
Effect estimate: ICC 0.87 (95% CI 0.84-0.89)
The FEW16 questionnaire is a reliable and valid tool for assessing self-reported physical well-being in elderly patients with HFrEF.
Supports FEW16 for physical well-being assessment in elderly HFrEF; extends validation data but leaves generalizability open.
AIMS: Patients with heart failure (HF) commonly suffer from severe impairment of quality of life (QoL). One main goal of HF treatment is improvement of QoL. Physical well-being is an essential component of QoL. To enable assessment of physical well-being in HF patients, we validated the FEW16 questionnaire in a prospective study with patients from the Cardiac Insufficiency Bisoprolol Study in ELDerly. METHODS AND RESULTS: In 127 HF patients (age 73 ± 5.5 years, 72% male, 60% New York Heart Association class II, left ventricular ejection fraction 37 ± 8.5%), we measured physical well-being (FEW16), QoL [36-Item Short-Form Health Survey (SF36)], and depressive symptoms [PRIME MD Patient Health Questionnaire German short version for depression (PHQ-D)] at baseline and two follow-up visits, and correlated FEW16 scores with QoL data and clinical parameters. FEW16 mean scores are 3.04 ± 1.04 at baseline, 3.19 ± 0.94 after 3 months, and 2.77 ± 0.94 after 2-4 years. We assessed data quality, scale assumptions, and construct validity and reliability. Cronbach's alpha for subscales resilience: 0.84; ability to enjoy: 0.80; vitality: 0.88; inner peace: 0.87; total score: 0.95. Intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) is 0.87 (95% CI 0.84-0.89, ICC (1.4). Pearson's correlations of FEW16 with SF36 and PHQ-D were significant. Six minutes walking distance and heart rate correlated significantly with the FEW16 total score. CONCLUSIONS: The FEW16 showed good reliability, internal consistency, and intraclass correlation. FEW16 scores correlated well with psychological and physical well-being (SF36) and clinical markers of exercise tolerance (6 min walk test and heart rate). Our results indicate a strong correlation of self-reported physical well-being with psychological factors. FEW16 values at baseline predicted the development of several aspects of QoL during beta-blocker up-titration.
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Tahirović et al. (2015) conducted an observational in Heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (n=127). FEW16 questionnaire was evaluated on Intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) for reliability (ICC 0.87, 95% CI 0.84-0.89). The FEW16 questionnaire demonstrated good reliability and internal consistency (ICC 0.87; 95% CI 0.84-0.89) for assessing physical well-being in patients with heart failure.
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