Harvard Medical School, Orthopaedic Hand and Upper Extremity Service, Massachusetts General Hospital, Yawkey Center, Suite 2100, 55 Fruit Street, Boston, MA, 02114, USA.
Clin Orthop Relat Res. 2013 Oct;471(10):3237-42. doi: 10.1007/s11999-013-3126-0. Epub 2013 Jun 26.
A low response rate is believed to decrease the validity of survey studies. Factors associated with nonresponse to surveys are poorly characterized in orthopaedic research.
QUESTIONS/PURPOSES: This study addressed whether (1) psychologic factors; (2) demographics; (3) illness-related factors; and (4) pain are predictors of a lower likelihood of a patient returning a mailed survey.
One hundred four adult, new or return patients completed questionnaires including the Pain Catastrophizing Scale, Patient Health Questionnaire-9 depression scale, Short Health Anxiety Index, demographics, and a pain scale (0-10) during a routine visit to a hand and upper extremity surgeon. Of these patients, 38% had undergone surgery and the remainder was seen for various other conditions. Six months after their visit, patients were mailed the DASH questionnaire and a scale to rate their satisfaction with the visit (0-10). Bivariate analysis and logistic regression were used to determine risk factors for being a nonresponder to the followup of this study. The cohort consisted of 57 women and 47 men with a mean age of 51 years with various diagnoses. Thirty-five patients (34%) returned the questionnaire. Responders were satisfied with their visit (mean satisfaction, 8.7) and had a DASH score of 9.6.
Compared with patients who returned the questionnaires, nonresponders had higher pain catastrophizing scores, were younger, more frequently male, and had more pain at enrollment. In logistic regression, male sex (odds ratio [OR], 2.6), pain (OR, 1.3), and younger age (OR, 1.03) were associated with not returning the questionnaire.
Survey studies should be interpreted in light of the fact that patients who do not return questionnaires in a hand surgery practice differ from patients who do return them. Hand surgery studies that rely on questionnaire evaluation remote from study enrollment should include tactics to improve the response of younger, male patients with more pain.
Level II, prognostic study. See Guidelines for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.
低应答率被认为会降低调查研究的有效性。在矫形外科研究中，对与调查无应答相关的因素的描述很差。
问题/目的：本研究旨在探讨以下四个方面的因素是否会降低患者邮寄调查回复的可能性：（1）心理因素；（2）人口统计学因素；（3）疾病相关因素；以及（4）疼痛。
104 名成年新患者或复诊患者在接受手部和上肢外科医生常规就诊时，完成了包括疼痛灾难化量表、患者健康问卷-9 抑郁量表、短健康焦虑量表、人口统计学资料和疼痛量表（0-10）在内的问卷。这些患者中，38%接受了手术，其余患者则因各种其他疾病就诊。就诊 6 个月后，患者收到了 DASH 问卷和一份评估就诊满意度的量表（0-10）。使用二变量分析和逻辑回归来确定该研究随访中无应答者的危险因素。该队列包括 57 名女性和 47 名男性，平均年龄为 51 岁，诊断各异。35 名患者（34%）返回了问卷。应答者对就诊满意度较高（平均满意度为 8.7），DASH 评分为 9.6。
与返回问卷的患者相比，未返回问卷的患者的疼痛灾难化评分更高、年龄更小、更频繁为男性、就诊时疼痛更严重。在逻辑回归中，男性（比值比 [OR]，2.6）、疼痛（OR，1.3）和年轻（OR，1.03）与不返回问卷相关。
在手部外科实践中，不返回问卷的患者与返回问卷的患者不同，因此应根据这一事实来解释调查研究。依赖于研究入组后远程进行问卷评估的手部外科研究应包括改善疼痛更严重的年轻男性患者应答率的策略。
II 级，预后研究。有关证据等级的完整描述，请参见作者指南。
