Abstract: ObjectiveTo determine whether the Chinese version of 36-item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) can be taken as an effective assessment to evaluate the quality of life in patients with knee osteoarthritis. Methods30 patients with knee osteoarthritis were tested twice in 3 d with the Chinese version SF-36 by two standard-trained testers. The Cronbach's α coefficient and intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) were investigated. ResultsThe ICC of total scores and parts scores in the Chinese version SF-36 were 0.54～0.91, while the Cronbach's α coefficients were 0.70～0.95. ConclusionThe Chinese version SF-36 is reliable in evaluating the quality of life in patients with knee osteoarthritis.

Key words: knee, osteoarthritis, 36-item Short Form Health Survey, reliability