EQ-5D-5L Valuation Study in UAE
CompletedData collected January–August 2023Published in Value in Health, April 2025
The EQ-5D is one of the most widely used questionnaires for measuring health-related quality of life. This study gave the UAE its own “value set”: a scoring system based on how the UAE population itself rates different health states, rather than borrowing values from other countries.
Methods
This cross-sectional study followed the EuroQol EQ-5D-5L valuation protocol, using the EuroQol Valuation Technology (EQ-VT). We interviewed 1,005 adults from the UAE general population (from a target of 1,150), recruited through two-stage quota sampling by emirate, age and sex across all seven emirates. Participants were UAE nationals or residents who had lived in the UAE for at least five years. Interviews were conducted face-to-face or online, in Arabic or English, by trained research assistants, with EuroQol quality control processes throughout.
Results
Values range from −0.654 for the worst health state to 1 for full health. Mobility had the largest effect on how people valued health states. This is the first EQ-5D-5L value set for the UAE, supporting local cost-effectiveness evidence, population health assessment and health system decisions.
Publication
Al Sayah F, Roudijk B, El Sadig M, Al Mannaei A, Farghaly MN, Dallal S, Kaddoura R, Metni M, Elbarazi I, Kharroubi SA. A Value Set for EQ-5D-5L in the United Arab Emirates. Value in Health. 2025;28(4):611–621. doi:10.1016/j.jval.2025.01.003
Funding
The study was supported by a grant from the EuroQol Research Foundation, with supplementary funding from Novartis. Ethical approval: UAE University Social Sciences Research Ethics Committee.
Principal investigators
Co-investigators
- Dr. Asma Al Mannaei (Abu Dhabi Department of Health)
- Dr. Mohamad Farghaly (Dubai Health Authority)
- Dr. Iffat Elbarazi (United Arab Emirates University)
- Dr. Mirna Matni (CCHO)
EQ-5D-5L Valuation Study in Qatar
OngoingRecruiting participants24-month study
Aims
The primary aim is to develop a value set for EQ-5D-5L health states based on the preferences of Qatar’s general adult population. Secondary aims are to:
- Examine the construct validity of the EQ-5D-5L in Qatar’s general adult population
- Develop population norms for the EQ-5D-5L
- Identify what shapes health preferences in Qatar’s population
- Explore the impact of culture and religion on completing preference elicitation exercises
- Compare value sets derived from composite time trade-off (cTTO), discrete choice with duration (DCEd) and hybrid methods, to assess how consistent they are
Methods
This is a cross-sectional, population-based study using interviewer-administered interviews, in person or online, following the EuroQol EQ-5D-5L valuation protocol and the EuroQol Valuation Technology (EQ-VT).
A sample of 1,150 adults is being recruited from Qatar’s general population using two-stage quota sampling. Interviews are conducted by trained research assistants, who complete a 3-day training, in private and convenient settings chosen by participants. EuroQol quality control processes are followed to ensure high-quality data.
Learn more about the EQ-5D instrument
Principal investigators
Co-investigators
- Marcel Jonker, PhD (EuroQol Research Foundation)
- Bram Roudijk, PhD (EuroQol Research Foundation)
- Dina Abushanab, PhD (QU Health, Qatar University)
- Daoud Al-Badriyeh, PhD (College of Pharmacy, Qatar University)
- Christiane Maskineh, PhD (Chair and co-founder, CCHO)
- Mirna Matni, PharmD, MSc (Director P&R & Health Policy Insights, CCHO)
Study coordinators: Youmna Bassil and Caline Saade (CCHO)