The SF-36 questionnaire and its usefulness in population studies: results of the German Health Interview and Examination Survey 1998

Objectives: To describe the distribution and the relationships of the SF-36 scales in a representative sample of the German population. Methods: The German National Health Interview and Examination Survey 1998 comprised 7124 participants aged 18 to 79 years and included the Short Form 36 Questionnaire (SF-36). The 1998 findings are compared to those of the first normative German SF-36 sample from 1994. Results: Older people (greater than or equal to 65 years) in particular have increased the mean scale values for quality-of-life assessment during the four years. The average of all SF-36 scales increases with the social status of the individual in all age categories. The representative sample shows a more positive subjective assessment of their quality-of-life by East Germans in nearly all scales of SF-36, although they do not have a correspondingly better health status. The intensity of pain and the number of diseases during the preceding year are shown to decrease the life quality scales. Furthermore the General Health scale of SF-36 is correlated with the physicians' consultation. Conclusion: The instrument to assess quality-of-life can generate useful information for a wide variety of variables. However, future health-related quality-of-life measurements in healthy population should be more sensitive and more differentiating than the SF-36 instruments.