Nottingham Health Profile: reliability in a sample of 542 subjects with major amputation of one or several limbs

The reliability of a generic health-related quality of life measure was assessed for subjects with major amputation of one or several limbs. The Nottingham Health Profile was sent a first time to 1011 limb amputees, and a second time to the 542 respondents to the first inquiry. The intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) between the answers to each survey was highest for the categories of distress caused by pain (ICC = 0.83), emotional reactions (ICC = 0.83) and mobility (ICC = 0.81). It was found satisfactory for energy level (ICC = 0.75), sleep (ICC = 0.75) and social isolation (ICC = 0.64). It is concluded that the NHP is a reliable health related quality of life measure for amputees.