ABSTRACT
The Short Form Health Survey [SF-36] and WHO Quality of Life-BREF [WHOQOL-BREF] questionnaires are two common tools to assess changes in quality of life [QOL] over the course of treatment, especially in patients with coronary artery disease [CAD]. However, the value of these two instruments among CAD patients has not been studied and compared. The objective of the present study was; therefore, to compare the SF-36 with the WHOQOL-BREF in these patients. Between May and September 2006, patients with a final diagnosis of CAD who were candidates for isolated coronary artery bypass grafting [CABG] and hospitalized in Tehran Heart Center were randomly divided into two groups of 268 patients [for assessment of QOL with the SF-36] and 275 patients [for assessment of QOL with the WHOQOL-BREF]. The correlations between the WHOQOL-BREF domains and SF-36 subscales, in addition to those between the SF-36 components summary scores and WHOQOL-BREF domains, were examined with Pearson's correlation coefficients. The correlations between the physical, psychological, and social domains of the WHOQOL-BREF and physical functioning, mental health, and social functioning of the SF-36 were weak with Pearson's correlation coefficients of 0.015, -0.036, and 0.042, respectively [r < 0.3]. There were also poor correlations between the physical component summary of the SF-36 and physical domain of the WHOQOL-BREF [r=0.001], and between the mental component summary of the SF-36 and mental domain of the WHOQOL-BREF [r=-0.082]. The correlation between the two questionnaires of the SF-36 and WHOQOL-BREF in the evaluation of QOL in CAD patients is weak