Development of a health-related quality of life questionnaire for women with androgenetic alopecia

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Abstract
Despite the negative effects of androgenetic alopecia (AGA), no standardized health‐related quality of life (HRQOL) questionnaire which is both specific to women and suitable for use in clinical trials currently exists. A questionnaire to assess HRQOL in women with AGA, the Women's Androgenetic Alopecia Quality of Life Questionnaire (WAA‐QOL), was recently developed. Aspects of life affected by AGA were generated from literature review, discussion with experts, and a focus group. The number of issues identified was reduced based on importance and relevance to women with AGA. A questionnaire was then constructed and pilot‐tested for comprehension. The resulting 25‐item instrument was later included in a double‐blind, placebo‐controlled clinical trial of finasteride 1 mg for the treatment of hair thinning in postmenopausal women (n = 137). Based on test characteristics, several questions were eliminated, resulting in a 16‐item questionnaire. The WAA‐QOL exhibited excellent test–retest reliability overall (intraclass correlation coefficient = 0.89), and for individual items (κ = 0.66–0.85), as well as high internal consistency (Crohnbach's α = 0.98). Responsiveness of the questionnaire could not be assessed. The WAA‐QOL is self‐completed in about 10 min, exhibits good content validity, internal consistency, and test–retest reliability, and may be useful in assessing the impact of female AGA on HRQOL or in evaluating therapeutic effects in clinical trials.