THE ENT database

  • Clinical documentation
  • Quality assurance
  • Research

Now with SAMEO-ATO

  • www.entstatistics.com

Advertisement

Measuring Health-Related Quality of Life in Chronic Otitis Media

Get the Zurich Chronic Middle Ear Inventory (ZCMEI-21) and its validated translations.
free to use

The ZCMEI-21 questionnaire is free according to the Terms of use. Please check the box below in order to activate the downloads of the PDF files.

Interested in conducting a translation and validation study of the ZCMEI-21 in a new language not yet available?

Contact us

Staging System for Cholesteatoma

  • www.chole.surgery

Classification of Tympanomastoid Surgery

  • www.sameo-ato.surgery

THE ENT database

  • Clinical documentation
  • Quality assurance
  • Research

Now with SAMEO-ATO

  • www.entstatistics.com

Advertisement

Staging System for Cholesteatoma

  • www.chole.surgery

Classification of Tympanomastoid Surgery

  • www.sameo-ato.surgery

About

The ZCMEI-21 is a globally acknowledged disease-specific questionnaire employed to assess health-related quality of life in chronic otitis media. It consists of four subscores that evaluate ear-related symptoms, hearing ability, psychosocial impacts of the disease, and utilization of medical resources. Responses are recorded on a 5-point Likert scale and scored from 0 to 4. The maximum total score for the ZCMEI-21 is 84, with higher scores indicating a lower health-related quality of life.

The ZCMEI-21 has been translated and validated in multiple languages, such as English, Italian, French, Japanese, Chinese, Turkish and others. The availability of this disease-specific patient-reported outcome measure in various languages facilitates the standardization of health-related quality of life assessments on an international scale.

Notably, the ZCMEI-21 stands out as the sole globally recognized disease-specific patient-reported outcome measure for chronic otitis media with an established “Minimal Clinically Important Difference” (MCID). The MCID serves as a crucial threshold, indicating a value beyond which a change in the total score of a questionnaire – post-therapy for instance – holds subjective significance for the patient. For the ZCMEI-21, the MCID is set at 5 points, meaning that a statistically significant alteration in the ZCMEI-21 total score carries clinical significance if it reaches or surpasses 5 points.

Selected References

  • Bächinger D, Röösli C, Ditzen B, Huber AM. Development and validation of the Zurich chronic middle ear inventory (ZCMEI-21): an electronic questionnaire for assessing quality of life in patients with chronic otitis media. Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol. 2016 Oct;273(10):3073-81. doi: 10.1007/s00405-016-3915-7.
  • Chatzimichalis M, Epprecht L, Weder S, Shaul C, Engle Folchert KJ, Machala MC, Goosmann MM, Naville M, Zhu A, Röösli C, Lee DJ, Cass SP, Briggs R, Huber AM, Bächinger D. English translation and validation of the Zurich chronic middle ear inventory (ZCMEI-21-E) assessing quality of life in chronic otitis media: A prospective international multicentre study. Clin Otolaryngol. 2019 May;44(3):254-262. doi: 10.1111/coa.13275.
  • Ralli M, Quaranta N, Canale A, Röösli C, Milella C, De Robertis V, De Soccio G, Greco A, Ralli G, Albera R, de Vincentiis M, Huber AM, Bächinger D. Cross- cultural Adaption and Validation of the Zurich Chronic Middle Ear Inventory Translated Into Italian (ZCMEI-21-It)-a Prospective Multicenter Study. Otol Neurotol. 2019 Mar;40(3):351-358. doi: 10.1097/MAO.0000000000002131.
  • Bächinger D, Takagi D, Yamada H, Teraoka M, Okada M, Hyodo J, Röösli C, Huber AM, Hato N. Japanese translation, cross-cultural adaption and multicentre validation of the Zurich chronic middle ear inventory (ZCMEI-21-Jap). Auris Nasus Larynx. 2019 Feb;46(1):18-23. doi: 10.1016/j.anl.2018.05.008. Epub 2018 Jun 2. PMID: 29871811.
  • Yang R, Zhang Y, Han W, Li Y, Li S, Ke J, Song Y, Liu J, Röösli C, Huber AM, Bächinger D, Ma F. Measuring health-related quality of life in chronic otitis media in a Chinese population: cultural adaption and validation of the Zurich Chronic Middle Ear Inventory (ZCMEI-21-Chn). Health Qual Life Outcomes. 2020 Jul 8;18(1):218. doi: 10.1186/s12955-020-01461-6.
  • Tutar B, Saltürk Z, Berkiten G, Ekincioğlu ME, Karaketir S, Arkan ME, Akgün MF, Yılmazer AB, Kulak E, Baechinger D, Uyar Y. A novel Turkish instrument for assessing quality of life in chronic otitis media –translation and validation of Zurich chronic middle ear inventory. Turk J Med Sci. 2020 Dec 17;50(8):1922-1929. doi: 10.3906/sag-2003-38.
  • Bächinger D, Mlynski R, Weiss NM. Establishing the minimal clinically important difference (MCID) of the Zurich Chronic Middle Ear Inventory (ZCMEI-21) in patients treated for chronic middle ear disease. Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol. 2020 Apr;277(4):1039-1044. doi: 10.1007/s00405-020-05819-w. Epub 2020 Jan 27. PMID: 31989271; PMCID: PMC7072039.
  • Weiss N, Stallbaum T, Botzen J, Bächinger D, Großmann W, Bernd HE, Mlynski R. Allogenes und autologes Material führt bei Mastoidhöhlenobliteration zu vergleichbaren Rezidivraten [Mastoid cavity obliteration with allogenic and autologous material]. Laryngorhinootologie. 2022 Jan;101(1):40-44. German. doi: 10.1055/a-1432-3123.
  • Mlynski R, Bächinger D, Langanke T, Lailach S, Neudert M, Weiss NM. Comparison of two disease‑specific instruments assessing health-related quality of life in patients with chronic otitis media. Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol. 2022 Feb;279(2):703-711. doi: 10.1007/s00405-021-06702-y.
  • Bächinger D, Großmann W, Mlynski R, Weiss NM. Characteristics of health-related quality of life in different types of chronic middle ear disease. Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol. 2021 Oct;278(10):3795-3800. doi: 10.1007/s00405-020-06487-6.
  • Lailach S, Langanke T, Zahnert T, Garthus-Niegel S, Neudert M. Impact of depressive disorders on quality of life after middle ear surgery in patients with chronic otitis media. Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol. 2021 Sep;278(9):3217-3225. doi: 10.1007/s00405-020-06397-7.
  • Weiss NM, Bächinger D, Rrahmani A, Bernd HE, Huber A, Mlynski R, Röösli C. Mapping the ChOLE classification to hearing outcomes and disease-specific health-related quality of life. Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol. 2020 Oct;277(10):2729-2738. doi: 10.1007/s00405-020-06002-x.
  • Weiss NM, Bächinger D, Botzen J, Großmann W, Mlynski R. Mastoid cavity obliteration leads to a clinically significant improvement in health-related quality of life. Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol. 2020 Jun;277(6):1637-1643. doi: 10.1007/s00405-020-05881-4.
  • Weiss NM, Stecher S, Bächinger D, Schuldt T, Langner S, Zonnur S, Mlynski R, Schraven SP. Open Mastoid Cavity Obliteration With a High-Porosity Hydroxyapatite Ceramic Leads to High Rate of Revision Surgery and Insufficient Cavity Obliteration. Otol Neurotol. 2020;41(1):e55–e63. doi:10.1097/MAO.0000000000002413.
  • Bächinger D, Neudert M, Dazert S, Röösli C, Huber A, Mlynski R, Weiss NM. Gesundheitsbezogene Lebensqualität bei der chronischen Otitis media – Messmethoden und deren Anwendung bei chirurgischen Therapien [Health-related quality of life in chronic otitis media-measurement methods and their application in surgical therapy]. HNO. 2023 Sep;71(9):556-565. German. doi: 10.1007/s00106-023-01324-8.
  • Schouwenaar EMM, Hellingman CA, Waterval JJ. Health-related quality of life after otologic surgical treatment for chronic otitis media: systematic review. Front Neurol. 2023;14:1268785. doi: 10.3389/fneur.2023.1268785.
  • Lucidi D, Cantaffa C, Nocini R, Martone A, Alicandri-Ciufelli M, Marchioni D, Presutti L, Molinari G. Quality of Life after Surgical Treatment for Chronic Otitis Media: A Systematic Review of the Literature. J Pers Med. 2022 Nov 27;12(12):1959. doi: 10.3390/jpm12121959.
  • Kraak JT, Merkus P, Patrick DL. Quality assessment of patient-reported outcome measures for patients with multiple ear complaints. Clin Otolaryngol. 2024. doi: 10.1111/coa.14137.
  • Lailach S, Baumann I, Zahnert T, Neudert M. Aktueller Stand der Lebensqualitätsmessung bei Patienten mit chronischer Otitis media und Schallleitungsschwerhörigkeit [State of the art of quality-of-life measurement in patients with chronic otitis media and conductive hearing loss]. HNO. 2018 Aug;66(8):578-589. German. doi: 10.1007/s00106-018-0524-3.

Contact

If you have any questions or comments, we are happy to hear from you! 

By the University of Zurich Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery

Website development and maintenance
by INNOFORCE Est

Terms of use

Permitted Use

The questionnaire is intended for scientific research purposes related to Health-Related Quality of Life in Chronic Otitis Media.

Users are permitted to administer the questionnaire in accordance with established research protocols and ethical standards.

Attribution

Users must acknowledge the source of the questionnaire by citing the original research publication.

Modification

The questionnaire should not be modified, adapted, or translated without explicit written permission.

Distribution

Users may distribute the questionnaire to research participants for the purpose of data collection within the context of approved research projects.

Distribution of the questionnaire to external parties for non-research purposes is strictly prohibited.

Data Handling

Users are responsible for ensuring the confidentiality and security of the collected data.

Any personally identifiable information collected must be handled in accordance with applicable data protection regulations.

Publication and Reporting

Users are encouraged to share their findings through publications, presentations, or reports, while citing the original research publication.

Commercial Use

The questionnaire and its data may not be used for commercial purposes without explicit written consent.

Contact Information

For inquiries or requests related to the questionnaire, please use the contact form on this website.

By accessing or using the questionnaire, you agree to be bound by these terms. 

Close

Version: 20 January 2024.

Imprint

INNOFORCE Est.
Industriestrasse 56
9491 Ruggell, Liechtenstein

Commercial Register Liechtenstein
Company no. FL-0002.091.277-8
Responsible authority: Office of Economic Affairs, Vaduz

Represented by
Christoph Wille

Contact
Telefon: +423 384 0100
Email: [email protected]

Privacy policy

Use of this website

Thank you for your interest in this website. We take the protection of your privacy in the collection, processing and use of personal data very seriously. In the following, we will inform you which data may be collected via our website and for what purpose.

When you visit this website, information about the access is recorded in a so-called log file. This information includes your IP address, the date and the pages you have accessed. This data is automatically analysed for statistical purposes and is used to optimise and design our applications to meet your needs. They cannot be assigned to a specific person.

If you send us personal data as part of an enquiry, we will only use, store and treat it confidentially for the purposes communicated.

Cookies

We use so-called “cookies” on our website, which enable an internet browser to be recognised. Cookies are small text files that are sent from the web server to your web browser and stored on your hard drive. They provide information about the use of our website and are used for statistical purposes. You can specify in your browser settings whether you allow or exclude the use of cookies or whether the use of cookies requires your confirmation.

Analytics

This website uses the open source web analysis service Matomo.

With the help of Matomo, we are able to collect and analyse data about the use of our website by website visitors. This enables us to find out, among other things, when which pages were accessed and from which region. We also record various log files (e.g. IP address, referrer, browser and operating system used) and can measure whether our website visitors perform certain actions (e.g. clicks, purchases, etc.).

The use of this analysis tool is based on Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f GDPR. The website operator has a legitimate interest in analysing user behaviour in order to optimise both its website and its advertising. If a corresponding consent has been requested, the processing is carried out exclusively on the basis of Art. 6 para. 1 lit. a GDPR and § 25 para. 1 TTDSG, insofar as the consent includes the storage of cookies or access to information in the user’s terminal device (e.g. device fingerprinting) within the meaning of the TTDSG. Consent can be revoked at any time.

Matomo Opt-out options

Spam protection for contact form

We use “Google reCAPTCHA” (hereinafter referred to as “reCAPTCHA”) on this website. The provider is Google Ireland Limited (“Google”), Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland.

The purpose of reCAPTCHA is to determine whether data entered on this website (e.g., information entered into a contact form) is being provided by a human user or by an automated program. To determine this, reCAPTCHA analyzes the behavior of the website visitors based on a variety of parameters. This analysis is triggered automatically as soon as the website visitor enters the site. For this analysis, reCAPTCHA evaluates a variety of data (e.g., IP address, time the website visitor spent on the site or cursor movements initiated by the user). The data tracked during such analyses are forwarded to Google.

Data are stored and analyzed on the basis of Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR. The website operator has a legitimate interest in the protection of the operator’s websites against abusive automated spying and against SPAM. If a respective declaration of consent has been obtained, the data will be processed exclusively on the basis of Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR. Any such consent may be revoked at any time.

For more information about Google reCAPTCHA please refer to the Google Data Privacy Declaration and Terms Of Use under the following links: https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en and https://policies.google.com/terms?hl=en.

Right to information

You have the right to request information free of charge at any time about the data we have stored about you. This also applies to the correction, blocking and deletion of this data. Please contact the following address for this purpose:

See contact information above.

Close