Table 2.
Mean scores for individual questions used to calculate domain-specific HRQL
| Mean | p value† | |
|---|---|---|
| Allergen avoidance and dietary restrictions | ||
| How troublesome do you find it, because of your food allergy, that you: | ||
| Must check yourself whether you can eat something when eating out? | 5.76 | |
| Must read labels? | 5.74 | 0.95 |
| Hesitate eating a product when you have doubts about it? | 5.67 | 0.75 |
| Must always be alert to what you are eating? | 5.66 | 0.70 |
| Are less able to taste or try various products when eating out? | 5.36 | 0.15 |
| Are able to eat fewer products? | 5.21 | <0.05 |
| Are limited as to the products that you can buy? | 4.47 | <0.001 |
| Are less able to spontaneously accept an invitation to stay for a meal? | 4.09 | <0.001 |
| Must be careful about touching certain foods? | 3.47 | <0.001 |
| Must refuse treats at school or work? | 2.58 | <0.001 |
| Emotional impact | ||
| Answer the following: | ||
| How disappointed are you when people don’t take your food allergy into account? | 5.50 | |
| How discouraged do you feel during an allergic reaction? | 4.74 | <0.05 |
| How troublesome do you find it, because of your food allergy, that you: | ||
| Have the feeling that you have less control of what you eat when eating out? | 5.40 | 0.86 |
| Must carry an EpiPen®? | 4.36 | <0.01 |
| How frightened are you because of your food allergy: | ||
| Of accidentally eating something wrong? | 4.59 | <0.05 |
| Of an allergic reaction? | 4.53 | <0.05 |
| To eat something that you have never eaten before? | 4.31 | <0.05 |
| Risk of accidental exposure | ||
| How troublesome do you find it, because of your food allergy, that you: | ||
| That you have to explain to people around you that you have a food allergy? | 5.00 | |
| That during social activities others can eat the food to which you are allergic? | 4.95 | 0.88 |
| That during social activities your food allergy is not taken into account enough? | 4.47 | 0.17 |
| That the ingredients of a food change? | 4.45 | 0.10 |
| That the label states: “May contain (traces of)….”? | 4.43 | 0.15 |
| That the labelling of the bulk packaging (e.g. box or bag) is different than the individual packages? | 3.27 | <0.001 |
FAQLQ-TF on a scale of 1–7, where 1 corresponds to best HRQL and 7 corresponds to worst HRQL; based on self-report
†Compared to the individual question with the highest mean score (i.e. worst HRQL) within each domain