Document 0079
 DOCN  M9580079
 TI    An index of symptoms for infection with human immunodeficiency virus:
       reliability and validity.
 DT    9506
 AU    Whalen CC; Antani M; Carey J; Landefeld CS; Cleveland Veterans Affairs
       Medical Center, OH 44106, USA.
 SO    J Clin Epidemiol. 1994 May;47(5):537-46. Unique Identifier : AIDSLINE
       MED/95248364
 AB    The objective of this study was to evaluate the reliability and validity
       of a brief index to measure symptoms in individuals infected with human
       immunodeficiency virus (HIV). From an ambulatory clinic that specializes
       in the care of HIV-infected individuals at a university hospital in
       northeast Ohio, 148 randomly selected outpatients (predominantly
       homosexual men) with a broad spectrum of HIV disease were enrolled in a
       prospective, cohort study. In standard interviews, patients rated the
       frequency of 36 symptoms related to HIV infection on an ordinal scale
       from zero (never) to three (daily); these interviews were repeated and
       outcomes determined every 3 months for one year. Clinical data were
       abstracted from the medical record with a standard chart review. Using
       specific criteria, 12 symptoms were selected for the HIV Symptom Index:
       fatigue, fevers, headache, imbalance, paresthesias, memory loss, cough,
       nausea, diarrhea, sadness, sleep disturbance, and skin problems. The HIV
       Symptom score (the sum of frequency ratings for the 12 symptoms) ranged
       from 0 to 31 with a mean of 9.4 (+/- SD 6.6). The test-retest
       reliability was high (intraclass correlation coefficient = 0.92) as was
       the internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = 0.79). The validity of the
       index was established with three observations. (1) The HIV Symptom Index
       makes clinical sense and includes a representative spectrum of symptoms
       of infection. (2) Symptom Index scores were greater in patients with
       more advanced disease and in patients who were functionally impaired.
       (3) The Index was responsive to changes in health as the disease
       progressed.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
 DE    Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome/DIAGNOSIS  Adolescence  Adult  Aged
       Aged, 80 and over  AIDS-Related Complex/DIAGNOSIS  Cohort Studies  Human
       HIV Infections/*DIAGNOSIS  Interviews  Middle Age  Prospective Studies
       Reproducibility of Results  Support, Non-U.S. Gov't  Support, U.S.
       Gov't, P.H.S.  CLINICAL TRIAL  JOURNAL ARTICLE  RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED
       TRIAL

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