Design of the low vision quality-of-life questionnaire (LVQOL) and measuring the outcome of low-vision rehabilitation

PURPOSE: To design and validate a vision-specific quality of-life assessmen t tool to be used in a clinical setting to evaluate low-vision rehabilitati on strategy and management. METHODS: Previous vision-related questionnaires were assessed by low-vision rehabilitation professionals and patients for relevance and coverage. The 74 items selected were pretested to ensure correct interpretation. One hund red and fifty patients with low vision completed the chosen questions on fo ur occasions to allow the selection of the most appropriate items, The visi on-specific quality of life of patients with low vision was compared with t hat of 70 age-matched and gender-matched patients with normal vision and be fore and after low-vision rehabilitation in 278 patients. RESULTS: Items that were unreliable, internally inconsistent, redundant, or not relevant were excluded, resulting in the 25-item Low Vision Quality-of -Life Questionnaire (LVQOL). Completion of the LVQOL results in a summed sc ore between 0 (a low quality of life) and 125 (a high quality of life). The LVQOL has a high internal consistency (alpha = 0.88) and good reliability (0.72). The average LVQOL score for a population with low vision (60.9 +/- 25.1) was significantly lower than the average score of those with normal v ision (100.3 +/- 20.8). Rehabilitation improved the LVQOL score of those wi th low vision by an average of 6.8 +/- 15.6 (17%). CONCLUSIONS: The LVQOL was shown to be an internally consistent, reliable, and fast method for measuring the vision-specific quality of life of the vi sually impaired in a clinical setting. It is able to quantify the quality o f life of those with low vision and is useful in determining the effects of low vision rehabilitation. (C) 2000 by Elsevier Science Inc, All rights re served.