REPORTING POPULATION NORMS AND SOCIOECONOMIC INEQUALITIES IN SELF-REPORTED HEALTH USING EQ-5D-5L: RESULTS FROM MULTICOUNTRY GENERAL POPULATION SURVEYS
Author(s)
Aaron Crowley, MA1, Agota Szende, MSc, PhD2, MF (Bas) Janssen, PhD3, Panna Shetty, MA4, You-Shan Feng, PhD4.
1Genesis Research Group, Forest Hills, NY, USA, 2Genesis Research Group, London, United Kingdom, 3Maths in Health, Amsterdam, Netherlands, 4University of Tuebingen, Tuebingen, Germany.
1Genesis Research Group, Forest Hills, NY, USA, 2Genesis Research Group, London, United Kingdom, 3Maths in Health, Amsterdam, Netherlands, 4University of Tuebingen, Tuebingen, Germany.
OBJECTIVES: This study examined standardized reporting of EQ‑5D‑5L population norms and socioeconomic inequalities using general population surveys from the multicountry EuroQol POPS II project.
METHODS: EQ‑5D‑5L data were standardized from nationally or regionally representative surveys in the Caribbean, China, Hungary, Japan, and Spain. Across countries, EQ-5D-5L, sex, and age information were available for 36,640 respondents. Population reference values were estimated by sex and seven age groups (18-24 to 75+). Outcomes included reported problems by EQ‑5D‑5L dimension, EQ VAS, EQ-5D-5L index based on national value sets, rescaled Level Sum Scores (LSS; 0-100), and reporting of full health (11111). Nested logistic regression models assessed associations of age, sex, education, family status, employment, and income with reporting problems. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) are reported.
RESULTS: Across countries, mean EQ VAS ranged from 78 to 83, LSS from 92 to 96, EQ-5D-5L index values from 0.91 to 0.96, and full health from 47% to 67%. Health worsened consistently with age across all EQ‑5D‑5L measures, particularly mobility, self-care, and usual activities. Women generally had higher odds of reporting problems, especially in mobility, pain/discomfort, and anxiety/depression. Lower education, unemployment, non-married family status, and lower income were generally associated with poorer outcomes. ORs for reporting any problem among those with low versus medium/high education ranged from 1.02 in China (95% CI 0.62-2.03) to 1.94 in Hungary (95% CI 1.25-2.99). ORs for being single, divorced, or widowed ranged from 1.03 in China (95% CI 0.76-1.40) to 1.25 in Japan (95% CI 1.11-1.40). Unemployment (ORs 1.18-1.84) and lower income (ORs 1.14-1.95) showed additional independent associations.
CONCLUSIONS: The findings confirm consistent age-, sex-, and socioeconomic differences in EQ‑5D‑5L outcomes across diverse national settings. Standardized EQ‑5D‑5L reporting provides useful country-specific benchmarks for monitoring population health, clinical care, and informing health policy and economic evaluation.
METHODS: EQ‑5D‑5L data were standardized from nationally or regionally representative surveys in the Caribbean, China, Hungary, Japan, and Spain. Across countries, EQ-5D-5L, sex, and age information were available for 36,640 respondents. Population reference values were estimated by sex and seven age groups (18-24 to 75+). Outcomes included reported problems by EQ‑5D‑5L dimension, EQ VAS, EQ-5D-5L index based on national value sets, rescaled Level Sum Scores (LSS; 0-100), and reporting of full health (11111). Nested logistic regression models assessed associations of age, sex, education, family status, employment, and income with reporting problems. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) are reported.
RESULTS: Across countries, mean EQ VAS ranged from 78 to 83, LSS from 92 to 96, EQ-5D-5L index values from 0.91 to 0.96, and full health from 47% to 67%. Health worsened consistently with age across all EQ‑5D‑5L measures, particularly mobility, self-care, and usual activities. Women generally had higher odds of reporting problems, especially in mobility, pain/discomfort, and anxiety/depression. Lower education, unemployment, non-married family status, and lower income were generally associated with poorer outcomes. ORs for reporting any problem among those with low versus medium/high education ranged from 1.02 in China (95% CI 0.62-2.03) to 1.94 in Hungary (95% CI 1.25-2.99). ORs for being single, divorced, or widowed ranged from 1.03 in China (95% CI 0.76-1.40) to 1.25 in Japan (95% CI 1.11-1.40). Unemployment (ORs 1.18-1.84) and lower income (ORs 1.14-1.95) showed additional independent associations.
CONCLUSIONS: The findings confirm consistent age-, sex-, and socioeconomic differences in EQ‑5D‑5L outcomes across diverse national settings. Standardized EQ‑5D‑5L reporting provides useful country-specific benchmarks for monitoring population health, clinical care, and informing health policy and economic evaluation.
Conference/Value in Health Info
2026-11, ISPOR Europe 2026, Vienna, Austria
Value in Health, Volume 29, Issue 12S
Code
EPH48
Topic
Economic Evaluation, Epidemiology & Public Health, Study Approaches
Disease
No Additional Disease & Conditions/Specialized Treatment Areas