HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE QUESTIONNAIRES IN MULTINATIONAL CLINICAL TRIALS. IS THERE A BEST WAY TO TRANSLATE THEM?

Lyon, France - Health-related quality of life (HRQL) questionnaires are frequently used to as part of the evaluation process in multinational clinical trials. Most HRQL questionnaires have been developed in English and thus require translation and cultural adaptation for use in other languages and cultures.

A literature review that will be published in the September/October 2008 issue of Value in Health suggests that a rigorous, multi-step procedure may lead to better translations. The paper, co-authored by Catherine Acquadro, Mapi Research Trust, and Katrin Conway, Mapi Research Institute, Lyon (France), Asha Hareendran, Pfizer Group of Pharmaceuticals, Sandwich (UK) and Neil Aaronson, The Netherlands Cancer Institute, Amsterdam (The Netherlands), is published on behalf of the European Regulatory Issues on Quality of Life Assessment (ERIQA) Group.

“Our review indicates that there is no strong empirical evidence in favour of one specific method. This is why we suggest that more empirical research on translation methodologies is needed” says Neil Aaronson, Head of the Division of Psychosocial Research and Epidemiology of the Netherlands Cancer Institute. “Toward this end, we have developed a checklist summarizing the steps used for translations, which can be used to evaluate the rigour of the applied methodologies” adds Katrin Conway, Managing Director of Mapi Research Institute.

Value in Health is the official journal of the International Society of Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR).

Value in Health (ISSN 1098-3015) publishes papers, concepts, and ideas that advance the field of pharmacoeconomics and outcomes research and help health care leaders to make decisions that are solidly evidence-based. The journal is published bi-monthly and has a regular readership of over 3,000 clinicians, decision-makers, and researchers worldwide. Value in Health is the official journal of the International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR).

ISPOR is a nonprofit, international organization that strives to translate pharmacoeconomics and outcomes research into practice to ensure that society allocates scarce health care resources wisely, fairly, and efficiently.

For more information: www.ispor.org

Value in Health Volume 11 Issue 5
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