Web-based questionnaires to assess perinatal outcome proved to be valid

Marleen M H J van Gelder; Saskia Vorstenbosch; Lineke Derks; Bernke Te Winkel; Eugène P van Puijenbroek; Nel Roeleveld

doi:10.1016/j.jclinepi.2017.07.004

Web-based questionnaires to assess perinatal outcome proved to be valid

J Clin Epidemiol. 2017 Oct:90:136-143. doi: 10.1016/j.jclinepi.2017.07.004. Epub 2017 Jul 18.

Authors

Marleen M H J van Gelder¹, Saskia Vorstenbosch², Lineke Derks³, Bernke Te Winkel², Eugène P van Puijenbroek⁴, Nel Roeleveld⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department for Health Evidence, Radboud Institute for Health Sciences, Radboud University Medical Center, P.O. Box 9101, Nijmegen 6500 HB, The Netherlands; Radboud REshape Innovation Center, Radboud University Medical Center, P.O. Box 9101, Nijmegen 6500 HB, The Netherlands. Electronic address: Marleen.vanGelder@radboudumc.nl.
² Netherlands Pharmacovigilance Centre Lareb, Goudsbloemvallei 7, 's-Hertogenbosch 5237 MH, The Netherlands.
³ Department for Health Evidence, Radboud Institute for Health Sciences, Radboud University Medical Center, P.O. Box 9101, Nijmegen 6500 HB, The Netherlands.
⁴ Netherlands Pharmacovigilance Centre Lareb, Goudsbloemvallei 7, 's-Hertogenbosch 5237 MH, The Netherlands; PharmacoTherapy, -Epidemiology and -Economics, Groningen Research Institute of Pharmacy, University of Groningen, Antonius Deusinglaan 1, Groningen 9713 AV, The Netherlands.
⁵ Department for Health Evidence, Radboud Institute for Health Sciences, Radboud University Medical Center, P.O. Box 9101, Nijmegen 6500 HB, The Netherlands; Department of Paediatrics, Radboudumc Amalia Children's Hospital, Radboud University Medical Center, P.O. Box 9101, Nijmegen 6500 HB, The Netherlands.

PMID: 28728921
DOI: 10.1016/j.jclinepi.2017.07.004

Abstract

Objectives: The objective of this study was to validate a Web-based questionnaire completed by the mother to assess perinatal outcome used in a prospective cohort study.

Study design and setting: For 882 women with an estimated date of delivery between February 2012 and February 2015 who participated in the PRegnancy and Infant DEvelopment (PRIDE) Study, we compared data on pregnancy outcome, including mode of delivery, plurality, gestational age, birth weight and length, head circumference, birth defects, and infant sex, from Web-based questionnaires administered to the mothers 2 months after delivery with data from obstetric records. For continuous variables, we calculated intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs), whereas sensitivity and specificity were determined for categorical variables.

Results: We observed only very small differences between the two methods of data collection for gestational age (ICC, 0.91; 95% CI, 0.90-0.92), birth weight (ICC, 0.96; 95% CI, 0.95-0.96), birth length (ICC, 0.90; 95% CI, 0.87-0.92), and head circumference (ICC, 0.88; 95% CI, 0.80-0.93). Agreement between the Web-based questionnaire and obstetric records was high as well, with sensitivity ranging between 0.86 (termination of pregnancy) and 1.00 (four outcomes) and specificity between 0.96 (term birth) and 1.00 (nine outcomes).

Conclusion: Our study provides evidence that Web-based questionnaires could be considered as a valid complementary or alternative method of data collection.

Keywords: Internet; Medical records; PRIDE Study; Pregnancy; Questionnaires; Validation studies.

Publication types

Validation Study

MeSH terms

Adult
Birth Weight
Body Height
Congenital Abnormalities
Delivery, Obstetric
Female
Gestational Age
Head / anatomy & histology
Humans
Internet*
Male
Middle Aged
Mothers*
Netherlands
Parity
Pregnancy
Pregnancy Outcome
Prospective Studies
Sensitivity and Specificity
Surveys and Questionnaires / standards*