The St. George’s Respiratory Questionnaire as a prognostic factor in IPF

BACKGROUND: It is unclear whether health related quality of life (HRQL) may have a predictive value for mortality in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). We investigated the relationship between HRQL assessed using the St. George’s Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ) and survival time in patients with IPF, and tried to determine a clinical meaningful cut off value to predict poorer survival rates. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed consecutive patients with IPF who underwent an initial evaluation from May 2007 to December 2012. The diagnosis of IPF was made according to the 2011 international consensus guidelines. We used Cox proportional hazard models to identify independent predictors for mortality rate in patients with IPF. RESULTS: We examined 182 eligible cases, average age was 66 years old, and 86% were male. Mean levels of percent predicted FVC, DLco, six-minute-walk test distance, and the SGRQ total score were around 80%, 58%, 580 m, and 34 points. On multivariate analysis, the SGRQ total score (hazard ratio [HR], 1.012; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.001–1.023; P = .029) and percent predicted FVC (HR, 0.957; 95% CI 0.944–0.971, P < .001) were independent predictors for mortality rate. Moreover, a score higher than 30 points in the SGRQ total score showed higher mortality rate (HR, 2.047; 95% CI, 1.329–3.153; P = .001). CONCLUSIONS: The SGRQ total score was one of independent prognostic factors in patients with IPF. Total scores higher than 30 points were associated with higher mortality rates. TRIAL REGISTRATION: This study was retrospective, observational study, so it is not applicable. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12931-017-0503-3) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.