We observed a lack of consistency in the application of methods for computing MID or MCID for generic and disease-specific HRQoL measures .
The anchor-based method yields conservative estimates of MID or MCID , compared to the distribution-based method .
OBJECTIVES The objective of the study was to assess the usability of minimal important difference ( MID ) and minimal clinical ly important difference ( MCID ) for measuring meaningful changes in disease-specific and generic health-related quality -of-life ( HRQoL ) outcomes in patient-centered care .
Individualizing quality-of-life outcomes reporting: how localized prostate cancer treatments affect patients with different levels of baseline urinary, bowel, and sexual function.
PURPOSE Although it is the most powerful predictor of early prostate cancer treatment-related complications and quality -of-life ( QOL ) outcomes , most studies do not stratify results by baseline function . Further , reporting functional outcomes as averaged numerical results may obscure informatively disparate courses . Using levels of treatment-related dysfunction , we address these problems and present the final QOL outcomes of our prospect i ve cohort study of patients with early prostate cancer . METHODS We created categories for sexual , bowel , and urinary function , measured using numerical scores of the vali date d Prostate Cancer Symptom Indices and stratified into " normal , " " intermediate " and " poor " levels of function by incorporating patient-reported symptom and distress information . We present QOL outcomes for 409 patients 36 months after radical prostatectomy , external-beam radiation therapy , and brachytherapy .  RESULTS Different levels of baseline sexual , bowel , and urinary function produced distinctive treatment-related changes from baseline to 36 months . In general , the average scale increases in dysfunction were greatest among patients with normal baseline function , although patients with normal and intermediate baseline function had similar increases in sexual dysfunction . For patients whose baseline urinary obstruction/irritation was poor , both average scale scores and most patients ' level of function improved after treatment , particularly after surgery . CONCLUSION The use of functional levels to stratify treatment-related outcomes by pretreatment functional status and to display the proportions of patients with improved , stable , or worsened function after treatment provides information that more specifically conveys the expected impact of treatment to patients choosing among localized prostate cancer treatments
We observed a lack of consistency in the application of methods for computing MID or MCID for generic and disease-specific HRQoL measures .
The anchor-based method yields conservative estimates of MID or MCID , compared to the distribution-based method .
OBJECTIVES The objective of the study was to assess the usability of minimal important difference ( MID ) and minimal clinical ly important difference ( MCID ) for measuring meaningful changes in disease-specific and generic health-related quality -of-life ( HRQoL ) outcomes in patient-centered care .