The SF-36 health status questionnaire in assessing patients with epistaxis secondary to hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia

BACKGROUND: This study assesses the ability of the short form 36 (SF-36), a validated health status survey, to measure the health of patients with epistaxis due to hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT). METHODS: Thirty-eight patients completed the SF-36 and symptom-specific questionnaires. They were asked to rate their epistaxis as severe, moderate, or mild. The SF-36 data are compared with a reference population and analyzed with respect to the subgroups. RESULTS: The scores for each dimension of health were significantly reduced (p < 0.05) when compared with the reference population for all dimensions except pain. When compared with the patients' ratings of severity, a significant correlation was detected in five dimensions (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The SF-36 reflects the reduced health status of patients with epistaxis due to HHT. Changes in the SF-36 score could be used as an outcome measure in assessing efficacy of treatment of this condition.