Development and psychometric validation of an eating disorder-specific health-related quality of life instrument.

Objective: Health-related quality of life (HRQOL) has been used increasingly as an outcome measure in clinical research. Although the generic quality of life instruments has been used in previous research, disease-specific instruments offer greater sensitivity and responsiveness to change than generic instruments. No such disease-specific instrument is currently available that applies to eating-disordered samples.

Method: The current article reports on the development and validation of the Eating Disorders Quality of Life (EDQOL) instrument, a disease-specific HRQOL self-report questionnaire designed for disordered eating patients.

Results: The EDQOL demonstrates excellent psychometric properties.

Conclusion: The application of the EDQOL as an outcome measure in eating disorder research is considered.