Linking of the quality of life in neurological disorders (Neuro-QoL) to the international classification of functioning, disability and health

Background: The quality of life in neurological disorders (Neuro-QoL) is a U.S. National Institutes of Health initiative that produced a set of self-report measures of physical, mental, and social health experienced by adults or children who have a neurological condition or disorder. Objective: To describe the content of the Neuro-QoL at the item level using the World Health Organization’s international classification of functioning, disability and health (ICF). Methods: We assessed the Neuro-QoL for its content coverage of functioning and disability relative to each of the four ICF domains (i.e., body functions, body structures, activities and participation, and environment). We used second-level ICF three-digit codes to classify items into categories within each ICF domain and computed the percentage of categories within each ICF domain that were represented in the Neuro-QoL items. Results: All items of Neuro-QoL could be mapped to the ICF categories at the second-level classification codes. The activities and participation domain and the mental functions category of the body functions domain were the areas most often represented by Neuro-QoL. Neuro-QoL provides limited coverage of the environmental factors and body structure domains. Conclusions: Neuro-QoL measures map well to the ICF. The Neuro-QoL–ICF-mapped items provide a blueprint for users to select appropriate measures in ICF-based measurement applications.