Conference: PANLAR Congress 2022 At: Miami, USA

Ilka Benedet Lineburger; Claiton Viegas Brenol; Vania Naomi Hirakata

Objectives:  The aim was to evaluate the usability and acceptance of a Multidimensional Health Assessment Questionnaire (MDHAQ/RAPID3) in electronic format for Brazilian Portuguese patients.

Methods: Participants were invited to answer an electronic questionnaire with reproduction of the MDHAQ items for consideration of conceptual equivalence, comprehension, and any cultural discrepancies or adaptations. The Portuguese version of the MDHAQ/RAPID3 was identically elaborated in an electronic format and underwent evaluation of its usability and acceptance by System Usability Scale (SUS) as part of the process of cross-cultural validation of the questionnaire for a Brazilian population of Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) patients.

Results: Thirty-eight participants were included in the analysis, with mean age of 56 years (±10), 13 years of education (±5.6) and 30 (78%) female gender. MDHAQ/RAPID3 maintained semantic, idiomatic, as well as conceptual and experience equivalence for the Brazilian population, with 92% acceptance from the participants. The usability of the questionnaire, estimated by the SUS, was considered "good" for most patients (61%) and relatives (50%) and "excellent" by nurses (42%), general practitioners (60%) and rheumatologists (80%). The mean was 70.6 (±14.0) among all participants, with a minimum score of 32.5 and a maximum of 100. There was no association between SUS evaluation and the participants’ level education (p = 0.092). Summing positive evaluation (good, excellent, and best imaginable) the participants judgment was good, ranging from 60 to 100%. Regarding acceptance, 92% of the participants considered the MDHAQ a good instrument for following their rheumatologic symptoms. Conclusions:  Web-based patient assessments provide a rationale for further exploration of their use as cost-effective tools to monitor RA activity during outpatient visits and to optimize tight control strategies. MDHAQ/RAPID3 in electronic format may allow a shared dynamic between physicians and patients regarding decisions of their clinical follow-up, improving adherence to treatment and being an important source of monitoring of adverse effects and effectiveness of the therapeutic measures instituted.

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Reference 2: Pincus T, Yazici Y, Bergman M. Development of a multi-dimensional health assessment questionnaire (MDHAQ) for the infrastructure of standard clinical care. Clin Exp Rheumatol. 2005 Sep-Oct;23(5 Suppl 39):S19-28. PMID: 16273781.