ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: The Pediatric Quality of Life (PedsQL4.0TM) scale has been shown to be reliable and valid in assessing health related quality of life (HRQOL). However, its Tagalog version has not been field-tested. OBJECTIVES: To determine the reliability and validity of the PedsQL4.0TM Tagalog version and to compare the HRQOL of Filipino liver transplant (LT) recipients, children with chronic liver disease (CLD) and healthy controls. METHODOLOGY: This is a cross-sectional study that included Filipinos 2-18 years who had undergone LT and those with CLD. PedsQL4.0TM Tagalog version was administered as a proxy-report for caregivers and child-report for children >5 years. RESULTS: 237 PedsQL4.0 questionnaires were completed. Reliability was demonstrated for psychosocial (Cronbach =0.86-0.88), physical ( =0.86-0.88) and total ( =0.89-0.92) health summary scores. Construct validity showed a medium to large effect size (0.39-1.34) between patients and controls. No difference was noted on the total health summary scores and the individual domains between LT recipients and controls while the scores of patients with CLD were significantly lower compared to LT recipients and healthy subjects. CONCLUSIONS: The PedsQL4.0TM Tagalog version is a valid and reliable HRQOL tool. The HRQOL of LT recipients is similar to healthy children while CLD patients had poorer HRQOL.