A new short Quality of Life measure for inflammatory bowel disease ( CUCQ-12).

Background: No disease-specific quality of life (QoL) measures for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) are established for use routinely in clinical practice. Aim:The aim of this study was to derive and validate a shorter form of the Crohn's and Ulcerative Colitis Questionnaire-32 (CUCQ-32) that encompasses the different presentations and severity of IBD. Methods: Construct validity was carried out using the EuroQol 5 dimensions (EQ5D) questionnaire, Simple Clinical Colitis Activity Index (SCCAI) and the Harvey-Bradshaw Index (HBI). Test-retest analysis was done during the patients' second follow up visits. Results: Using the data from 124 patients, a 12-item questionnaire (CUCQ-12) was developed. An expert focus group identified supplementary questions to cover patients with stoma. The validity and reliability of the CUCQ-12 was examined using data from 484 patients with IBD as part of the UK IBD biological therapies audit. Using the data from 61 patients who had stoma, we identified 5 stoma specific questions for the CUCQ-12 plus. The CUCQ-12 demonstrated good internal consistency (Cronbach's = 0.86); had good reproducibility (intra-class correlation coefficient= 0.74); was well correlated with the EQ5D (r= - 0.48), HBI (r= 0.45) and SCCAI (r= 0.43); and had good responsiveness statistics ( more 0.5).Conclusions: CUCQ-12 is a valid and reliable QoL measure that can be used for all patients with IBD in clinical practice.