Table 1
Characteristics of the multiple sclerosis (MS) patients for validation of the Slovenian version of Multiple Sclerosis Quality of Life-54 questionnaire (n=134).
| Characteristic | Category | No. (%)/Median; Min-Max; Q1-Q3 |
|---|---|---|
| Education | Primary | 16 (11.9) |
| Secondary | 94 (70.1) | |
| College or higher | 24 (17.9) | |
| Employment status | Employed | 63 (47.0) |
| Unemployed | 18 (13.4) | |
| Retired | 53 (39.6) | |
| Marital status | Single | 44 (32.8) |
| Married/ | 90 (67.2) | |
| cohabiting | ||
| Area of living | Rural | 80 (59.7) |
| Urban | 54 (40.3) | |
| Disease duration (years) | 8; 0-33; 4-12.25 | |
| Disease course | Primary progressive | 6 (4.5) |
| Secondary progressive | 23 (17.2) | |
| Relapsing-remitting | 105 (78.4) | |
| Clinical worsening of the disease* | Yes | 51 (38.1) |
| No | 83 (61.9) | |
| Immunomodulatory therapy | Yes | 92 (68.7) |
| No | 42 (31.3) | |
| EDSS | 3.0; 0.0-8.0; 1.625-4.5 |
LEGEND: Q1 – the first quartile; Q3 – the third quartile;
* clinical worsening of the disease in the past year prior the neurological examination, excluding the period of 30 days prior the examination (a relapse of relapsing-remitting type of MS or an increase of the EDSS score by 1 point in progressive type of MS; EDSS – Expanded Disability Status Scale score
Table 2
The total number and percentage of missing answers within a subscale/single item measure in the Slovenian version of Multiple Sclerosis Quality of Life-54 questionnaire validation study.
| Subscale/Item | N of items | Total N of answers | N of missing answers | % of missing answers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Subscales | ||||
| Physical health | 10 | 1323 | 17 | 1.3 |
| Role limitations due to physical problems | 4 | 525 | 11 | 2.1 |
| Role limitations due to emotional problems | 3 | 396 | 6 | 1.5 |
| Pain | 3 | 397 | 5 | 1.2 |
| Emotional well-being | 5 | 655 | 15 | 2.2 |
| Energy | 5 | 660 | 10 | 1.5 |
| Health perceptions | 5 | 664 | 6 | 0.9 |
| Social function | 3 | 395 | 7 | 1.7 |
| Cognitive function | 4 | 531 | 5 | 0.9 |
| Health distress | 4 | 532 | 4 | 0.8 |
| Sexual function | 4 | 520 | 16 | 3.0 |
| Overall quality of life | 2 | 264 | 4 | 1.5 |
| Single-item measures | ||||
| Change in health | 1 | 133 | 1 | 0.8 |
| Satisfaction with sexual function | 1 | 129 | 5 | 3.7 |
Table 3
Statistical description and the Cronbach’s Alpha (α) for the Slovenian version of Multiple Sclerosis Quality of Life-54 questionnaire subscales/single item measures (n=134).
| Subscale/Item | N of items | Mean | SD | α |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Subscales | ||||
| Physical health | 10 | 55.7 | 29.6 | 0.94 |
| Role limitations due to physical problems | 4 | 33.1 | 41.0 | 0.90 |
| Role limitations due to emotional problems | 3 | 62.7 | 41.3 | 0.83 |
| Pain | 3 | 65.9 | 24.0 | 0.89 |
| Emotional well-being | 5 | 74.4 | 15.9 | 0.84 |
| Energy | 5 | 55.2 | 19.2 | 0.84 |
| Health perceptions | 5 | 44.6 | 14.8 | 0.58 |
| Social function | 3 | 72.8 | 19.3 | 0.68 |
| Cognitive function | 4 | 71.4 | 23.2 | 0.91 |
| Health distress | 4 | 72.0 | 19.9 | 0.85 |
| Sexual function | 4 | 71.4 | 28.2 | 0.90 |
| Overall quality of life | 2 | 67.8 | 15.9 | 0.86 |
| Single-item measures | ||||
| Change in health* | 1 | 45.3 | 22.6 | |
| Satisfaction with sexual function* | 1 | 61.4 | 25.7 |
LEGEND: SD – standard deviation;
Table 4
Component loadings after rotation in the Slovenian version of Multiple Sclerosis Quality of Life-54 questionnaire validation study (n=134).
| Initial Eigenvalues | Extraction Sums of Squared Loadings | Rotation Sums of Squared Loadings | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Component | Total | % of variance | Cum. % | Total | % of variance | Cum. % | Total | % of variance | Cum. % |
| 1 | 5.906 | 49.2 | 49.2 | 5.906 | 49.2 | 49.2 | 3.659 | 30.5 | 30.5 |
| 2 | 1.219 | 10.2 | 59.4 | 1.219 | 10.2 | 59.4 | 3.466 | 28.9 | 59.4 |
| 3 | 0.938 | 7.8 | 67.2 | ||||||
| 4 | 0.765 | 6.4 | 73.6 | ||||||
| 5 | 0.625 | 5.2 | 78.8 | ||||||
| 6 | 0.564 | 4.7 | 83.5 | ||||||
| 7 | 0.479 | 4.0 | 87.5 | ||||||
| 8 | 0.423 | 3.5 | 91.0 | ||||||
| 9 | 0.349 | 2.9 | 93.9 | ||||||
| 10 | 0.277 | 2.3 | 96.2 | ||||||
| 11 | 0.257 | 2.1 | 98.4 | ||||||
| 12 | 0.198 | 1.6 | 100.0 | ||||||
Table 5
Component loadings after rotation in the Slovenian version of Multiple Sclerosis Quality of Life-54 questionnaire validation study (n=134).
| Rotated factor loadings | ||
|---|---|---|
| Subscale | Component 1 Mental component | Component 2 Physical component |
| Physical health | 0.129 | 0.854 |
| Role limitations due to physical problems | 0.184 | 0.792 |
| Role limitations due to emotional problems | 0.472 | 0.475 |
| Pain | 0.275 | 0.570 |
| Emotional well-being | 0.874 | 0.104 |
| Energy | 0.750 | 0.407 |
| Health perceptions | 0.415 | 0.536 |
| Social function | 0.474 | 0.654 |
| Cognitive function | 0.754 | 0.174 |
| Health distress | 0.698 | 0.320 |
| Sexual function | 0.202 | 0.590 |
| Overall quality of life | 0.701 | 0.432 |