Objective: The limited existing asthma control questionnaires that are available for children 5 years of age or younger in China mostly assess only the impairment domain of asthma control. Here, the English version of the Test for Respiratory and Asthma Control in Kids (TRACK) was translated into Chinese and validated for its application in asthma control in preschool children.
Design: Prospective validation study.
Setting and participants: A total of 321 Chinese preschool children suffering from asthma completed the study from December 2017 to February 2018.
Method: The TRACK translation into Chinese employed the translation and back translation technique. The caregivers of the preschool children with asthma symptoms completed TRACK during two clinical visits over 4-6 weeks. Moreover, the physicians completed a Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA)-based asthma control survey at both visits. The utility of TRACK for assessing the change in asthma control status and its reliability and discriminant validity were evaluated.
Results: The Chinese version of TRACK showed internal consistency reliability values of 0.63 and 0.71 at each visit, respectively (Cronbach's α). The test-retest reliability was 0.62 for individuals whose GINA-based assessment results were the same at both visits (n=206). The TRACK scores for the children in the various asthma control categories were significantly different (p<0.001). Children recommended for increased treatment by the physicians had lower TRACK scores than those recommended for no change in treatment or decreased treatment (p<0.001).
Conclusion: The study verifies the validity and reliability of the Chinese version of TRACK. Changes in the TRACK scores effectively reflected the level of asthma control in preschool children and guided further treatment strategies.
Trial registration number: NCT02649803.
Keywords: asthma; asthma control; preschool children; questionnaire; reliability; validity.
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