Health-Related Quality of Life

In 1948, the World Health Organization defined health as “the state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity” (World Health Organization [WHO], 1948). Since then, QoL has become increasingly important in health-care practice and research. The term “health-related quality of life” (HRQoL) narrows QoL to aspects relevant to health. However, HRQoL is a comprehensive and complex concept for which no universally accepted definition is available (Fayers & Machin, 2000). Two aspects of HRQoL are central in most definitions. First, it is a multidimensional concept that can be viewed as a latent construct which describes the physical, role functioning, social, and psychological aspects of well-being and functioning (Bullinger, 1991; Calman, 1987; Spilker, 1990). Second, in contrast to QoL, HRQoL can include both objective and subjective perspectives in each domain (Testa & Simonson, 1996). The…