Quantification of dyspnoea using descriptors: development and initial testing of the Dyspnoea-12
Janelle Yorke; Shakeeb H. Moosavi; C Shuldham; Paul Jones; David Andrich
RATIONALE: Dyspnoea is a debilitating and distressing symptom that is reflected in different verbal descriptors. Evidence suggests that dyspnoea, like pain perception, consists of sensory quality and affective components. The objective of this study was to develop an instrument that measures overall dyspnoea severity using descriptors that reflect its different aspects. METHODS: 81 dyspnoea descriptors were administered to 123 patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), 129 with interstitial lung disease and 106 with chronic heart failure. These were reduced to 34 items using hierarchical methods. Rasch analysis informed decisions regarding further item removal and fit to the unidimensional model. Principal component analysis (PCA) explored the underlying structure of the final item set. Validity and reliability of the new instrument were further assessed in a separate gr...
Janelle Yorke, Shakeeb H. Moosavi, C Shuldham, Paul Jones, & David Andrich (2009). Quantification of dyspnoea using descriptors: development and initial testing of the Dyspnoea-12. Thorax, 65(1), 21-26. https://doi.org/10.1136/thx.2009.118521