The MARS questionnaire: quality of life survey for acute rhinosinusitis

Acute rhinosinusitis (ARS) significantly reduces the quality of life (QoL). While intensive research has focused on the QoL in patients with chronic rhinosinusitis, data regarding the impact of ARS on the QoL are relatively sparse. The aim of this study was to construct and validate a simple, reliable QoL questionnaire for ARS patients, which is also one of the priorities set for EPOS 2012.

The questionnaire was constructed as follows: a review of literature, collection of symptoms as well as social and emotional consequences by a panel of ENT specialists and general practitioners, interviews with patients experiencing ARS, and a pre-test with another patient group. The questionnaire was validated by determining its internal reliability, discriminant validity, and responsiveness. The survey was given to 50 ARS patients at the time of diagnosis and again 14 days after treatment. The ARS diagnosis was established using the EPOS 12 criteria. The control group consisted of 50 medical students without any sinonasal symptoms.

We developed a 13-item questionnaire, called the MARS (Measurement of Acute Rhinosinusitis). Cronbach's alpha was determined to be 0.679. The two-tailed t-test showed a statistically significant difference between the patient group and the control group (p = 0.0000). The SRM coefficient was 1.781.

The MARS questionnaire is a QoL instrument developed and validated especially for patients with ARS. This survey demonstrated good internal consistency and excellent discriminant validity, responsiveness, and feasibility for use in daily clinical practice and research.