Quality of life and long-term ventilation

The interest in measuring HS or QoL in patients with respiratory diseases has increased progressively over the last decade, but only recently has it been applied to patients with more severe disease (ie, patients with CRF who are receiving LTOT or NIPPV). The impact of CRF on the daily life and well being of patients can be measured in a number of different ways. There is evidence, however, that it is not possible to predict patients' health from surrogate measures (eg, spirometry or exercise performance) and that the size of the health gain following treatments or interventions cannot be predicted from changes in physiologic measurements. Adequate assessments of HS can be measured directly only through the use of valid and reliable QoL questionnaires. A range of different instruments is available in the literature. The SGRQ and MRF28 have been shown to be applicable and reliable in patients on long-term ventilation.