Table 6.
Confirmation of a priori hypotheses regarding the expected differences between groups and the correlation between domains of the PROMIS-29
| Hypotheses | Number confirmed |
|---|---|
| Older participants score better than younger participants on the domains fatigue, sleep disturbance, anxiety and depression; a difference of at least 1 point is expected between each adjacent age group (18–39, 40–64, ≥ 65)a | 2/8 |
| Younger participants score better than older participants on the domains physical function and pain interference and on pain intensity; a difference of at least 1 point is expected between each adjacent age group (18–39, 40–64, ≥ 65) for physical function and pain interference, and a difference of at least 0.5 point for pain intensitya | 5/6 |
| The youngest (18–39) and oldest (≥ 65) age group score at least 1 point better than the middle age group (40–64) on the domains ability to participate in social roles and activitiesa | 0/2 |
| Males score at least 1 point better than females on all domains, and 0.5 point better on pain intensitya | 7/8 |
| Participants without chronic diseases score at least 2 points better than people with chronic diseases on all domains, and 1 point better on pain intensitya | 5/8 |
| The following domains have a correlation between 0.6 and 0.7: physical function and pain interference (negative), physical function and pain intensity (negative), anxiety and depression, sleep disturbance and fatigue | 4/8 |
| The domains ability to participate in social roles and activities and physical function have a correlation between 0.4 and 0.6 | 2/2 |
| The domain pain interference has a correlation of at least 0.6 with pain intensity | 2/2 |
| The remaining domains have a correlation of less than 0.5 (depending on the direction, this might be negative) | 42/44 |
| Total | 69/88 (78%) |
| Physical function | 10/11 (91%) |
| Ability to participate in social roles and activities | 8/11 (73%) |
| Anxiety | 8/11 (73%) |
| Depression | 8/11 (73%) |
| Fatigue | 9/11 (82%) |
| Sleep disturbance | 7/11 (64%) |
| Pain interference | 11/11 (100%) |
| Pain intensity | 8/11 (73%) |
aBetter means higher T-scores for the domains physical function and ability to participate in social roles and activities, and lower T-scores for the domains anxiety, depression, fatigue, sleep disturbance, pain interference; for pain intensity, better means a lower score on the 0–10 numeric scale