Reliability and validity of the Arabic version of the Swiss Spinal Stenosis Questionnaire Among Saudi Patients with Lumbar Spinal Stenosis

Abstract

Abstract Background: The Swiss spinal stenosis questionnaire is a standard tool to assess the Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) in patients suffer from lumbar spinal stenosis but, because of cultural differences limited use among Arabic patients. The aim is to perform a cross-cultural adaptation and validation of Arabic version of Swiss spinal stenosis questionnaire and test it on Saudi patients with lumbar spinal stenosis. Methods: This a cross sectional study run between January 2021 and December 2022 recruited 120 patients. The cross-cultural adaptation process was performed using the American Association of Orthopedic Surgeons (AAOS) Outcomes Committee method. All patients had completed the Arabic version of Swiss spinal stenosis questionnaire and SF-12 preoperatively and 6-months postoperatively. The validity and internal consistency were tested using the intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC), Cronbach alpha, Pearson correlation coefficient, and confidence interval (CI). Results: We analyzed the result of 120 female patients. The average age is 64 ± 6.4 years (range from 55-75 years). The overall Cronbach alpha (CA) of all domains of Swiss spinal stenosis questionnaire is 0.90. However, the Cronbach alpha for the symptom-severity scale (Q1-7) and, functional disability scale (Q8-12) is 0.92 and 0.88 respectively. The ICC were 0.92, 0.93 and 0.84 for all items, symptom-severity scale and functional disability scale respectively. High Pearson correlation coefficients found between the SF-12 score and Swiss spinal stenosis total score. Conclusion: The Arabic version of the Swiss spinal stenosis questionnaire is a reliable and valid instrument and can be applied to evaluate the surgical outcome of patients with lumbar spinal stenosis.