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Crossover randomized controlled trial of the electronic version of the Chinese SF-36

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Journal of Zhejiang University SCIENCE B Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Objectives

to verify the feasibility and reliability of the electronic version of Chinese SF-36 based on the Quality-of-Life-Recorder.

Design

A crossover randomized controlled trial, comparing a paper-based and an electronic version of the Chinese SF-36, was conducted. According to generated random numbers, interviewees were asked to fill out either the electronic version or the paper version first. The second version was filled in after a pause of at least 10 min.

Settings and participants

One group of 100 medical students at the School of Medicine of Zhejiang University and the other group of 50 outpatients at a clinic for general practice in Hangzhou City (China) were eventually recruited in this study.

Results

The acceptance of the electronic version was good (60% of medical students and 84% of outpatients preferred the electronic version). At the level of eight-scale scores, the mean-difference for each scale (except for general health) between the two versions was less than 5%. At the level of 36 questions, the percentage of “exact agreement” ranged within 64%–99%; the percentage of “global agreement” ranged within 72%–99%; 77% of the kappa coefficients demonstrated “good/excellent agreement” and 23% of the kappa coefficients demonstrated “medium agreement”.

Conclusion

This study, for the first time, can provide empirical basis for the confirmation of the feasibility and reliability of the electronic version of the Chinese SF-36 and may provide an impulse towards widespread deployment of the Quality-of-Life-Recorder in Chinese populations.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Social Medicine and Family Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China

    Chen Tian-hui, Li Lu, Du Ya-ping & Wang Hong-mei

  2. Department of Medical Psychology and Medical Sociology, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, 37073, Germany

    Chen Tian-hui

  3. Scientific IT Consulting, Duderstadt, 37115, Germany

    Sigle Joerg M.

  4. Institute for Informatics, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, 37083, Germany

    Lei Jun

Authors
  1. Chen Tian-hui
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  2. Li Lu
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  3. Sigle Joerg M.
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  4. Du Ya-ping
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  5. Wang Hong-mei
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  6. Lei Jun
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Li Lu.

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Chen, Th., Li, L., Sigle, J.M. et al. Crossover randomized controlled trial of the electronic version of the Chinese SF-36. J. Zhejiang Univ. - Sci. B 8, 604–608 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1631/jzus.2007.B0604

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1631/jzus.2007.B0604

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