Data comparing the EQ-5D-Y-5L and EQ-5D-Y-3L in South Africa

An observational, analytical cohort study with repeated measures for test-retest reliability was conducted. Three research settings, each with children or adolescents in different health states, but from similar socioeconomic backgrounds (low to middle income) in Cape Town, South Africa, were included in the study. In the first research setting, children or adolescents requiring acute medical/surgical treatment were recruited from an acute tertiary pediatric hospital and a pediatric orthopedic hospital. These children or adolescents were from medical, surgical, or trauma wards. Second, children or adolescents with stable chronic health conditions were recruited from schools for learners with special needs. These schools have specialized education services for learners with normal intellect diagnosed with physical disabilities (eg, cerebral palsy, spina bifida, or muscle diseases) or learning disabilities (eg, autism spectrum disorder or attention deficit disorder) or both. Third, children or adolescents attending 2 similar mainstream schools, with generally healthy learners, were recruited as a general population sample. All children or adolescents aged 8 to 15 years, who were able to read and write English, at each facility were eligible for the study. Only those who returned a signed informed consent and assent were included in the study, and those who were critically ill or who were medically unstable were excluded because the research may have been too distressing. All participants completed the EQ-5D-Y-3L and EQ-5D-Y-5L. The Y-5L was presented first given that testing of the adult measures found that if the 3L version was presented first, the additional levels on the 5L version were not considered.