OBJECTIVEThe Chinese Quality of Life Instrument (ChQOL) was developed as a valid generic health status instrument based on the well-established theory of health in Chinese medicine. Psychometric properties of the ChQOL were good. In the present study, the responsiveness of the ChQOL in patients with congestive heart failure (CHF) were investigated and compared with two generic questionnaires, the Medical Outcomes Study Short Form 36-item Health Survey (SF-36) and World Health Organization Quality of Life Assessment (WHOQOL-BREF), as well as one disease-specific questionnaire, the Minnesota Living with Heart Failure Questionnaire (MLHF).

METHODSThirty-nine in-patients with CHF who had undergone treatment with integrative medicine were recruited. The health status measurements were performed at enrolment and after a 4-week treatment. The following responsiveness indices were used: the effect size (ES) and standardized response mean (SRM). All patients were classified into those groups with stable measures and those groups with changes after a 4-week treatment, based upon both the doctor's global rating of changes in heart function tests, and the patient's global rating of changes in overall quality of life.

RESULTSAll domains of the ChQOL showed significant improvement. In the comparison of the responsiveness indices, the ChQOL was regarded as more responsive than the WHOQOL-BREF or SF-36 utility, but it was less responsive than the MLHF.

CONCLUSIONSThe ChQOL was better in sensitivity and responsiveness for assessing congestive heart failure as a generic measure than the SF-36 and WHOQOL-BREF. The ChQOL is considered suitable as an outcome measure for clinical trials in patients with congestive heart failure.