Development and validation of the Diabetic Foot Ulcer Scale-short form (DFS-SF).

Abstract

BACKGROUND:

The Diabetic Foot Ulcer Scale (DFS) provides comprehensive measurement of the impact of diabetic foot ulcers on patients' QOL through self-administration of 64 items comprising 15 subscales.

OBJECTIVE:

To develop and evaluate a short form of the DFS (DFS-SF) to reduce patient burden and the number of outcome measures, and to improve sensitivity to change in clinical condition.

METHODS:

The DFS-SF was created through the analysis of data from a double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomised trial of the efficacy and safety of becaplermin (recombinant human platelet-derived growth factor BB) in the treatment of chronic, full-thickness, neuropathic, diabetic foot ulcers. Using these data, items demonstrating poor psychometric properties were eliminated. Exploratory factor analyses were then conducted to develop a new, more parsimonious scaling algorithm that optimised the internal consistency of the new subscales. Finally, data from two additional clinical trials were used to assess replicability of the DFS-SF subscale structure.

RESULTS:

The DFS-SF contains a total of 29 items comprising six subscales. The results of both confirmatory and exploratory factor analyses provided support for the scaling algorithm. The DFS-SF subscales showed good internal consistency, reliability and construct validity, and demonstrated sensitivity to ulcer healing.

CONCLUSIONS:

The results of this investigation indicate that the DFS-SF has good psychometric properties and replicability.

• Authors: Carla M Bann, Sheri E Fehnel, Dennis D Gagnon
• Journal: PharmacoEconomics (Pharmacoeconomics) Vol. 21 Issue 17 Pg. 1277-90 ( 2003) ISSN: 1170-7690 [Print] New Zealand
• PMID: 14986739 (Publication Type: Comparative Study, Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't)

Topics

• Adult
• Aged
• Aged, 80 and over
• Diabetic Foot (psychology)
• Double-Blind Method
• Female
• Humans
• Male
• Middle Aged
• Psychometrics (methods)
• Quality of Life (psychology)
• Reproducibility of Results
• Severity of Illness Index
• Sickness Impact Profile