Reflux Symptom Index: Translation to the Kazakh Language and Validation

Gulnur Nukusbekova; Dinara Toguzbayeva; Ramil Hashimli; Haldun Oguz; Saule Taukeleva

doi:10.1016/j.jvoice.2022.07.004

Reflux Symptom Index: Translation to the Kazakh Language and Validation

J Voice. 2022 Aug 3:S0892-1997(22)00205-3. doi: 10.1016/j.jvoice.2022.07.004. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Gulnur Nukusbekova¹, Dinara Toguzbayeva², Ramil Hashimli³, Haldun Oguz⁴, Saule Taukeleva²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Asfendiyarov Kazakh National Medical University, Almaty, Kazakhstan. Electronic address: n_gulnur_86@mail.ru.
² Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Kazakh-Russian Medical University, Almaty, Kazakhstan.
³ Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Azerbaijan State Advanced Training Institute for Doctors named after Aziz Aliyev, Baku, Azerbaijan.
⁴ Department of Otolaryngology, Fonomer, Ankara, Turkey.

PMID: 35933255
DOI: 10.1016/j.jvoice.2022.07.004

Abstract

Background: This research focuses on the translation and validation of the Reflux Symptom Index (RSI) in Kazakh language and the comparison of its results among patients with symptoms of Laryngopharyngeal reflux (LPR) and without LPR symptoms.

Objective: This study aims to translate and validate the RSI in Kazakh language (Kz-RSI).

Methods: The RSI from the original American English version has been translated according to standard procedures into Kazakh language. The study included 248 patients, 124 LPR patients, and 124 asymptomatic controls. A final version of the Kz-RSI was tested twice: on Day 0 and Day 14 for participants without LPR symptoms and on Day 0 and posttreatment for those with LPR symptoms. Reliability, validity, and internal consistency of test-retest were calculated.

Results: The Cronbach's alpha value for Kz-RSI was 0.94, indicating excellent internal consistency. The single measurement absolute agreement of the interclass correlation coefficient was 0.90 (95% confidence interval [0.86; 0.93]), which indicates good retest reliability. The total Kz-RSI scores and each item were significantly higher in the LPR group than in the control group (P < 0.001). In the posttreatment LPR patient group, the Kz-RSI scores for each item and overall were significantly lower than the pretreatment scores (P < 0.001).

Conclusions: Kz-RSI has been successfully translated and validated to identify LPR among the Kazakh-speaking population. Moreover, it is an inexpensive method with strong internal consistency, high retesting rates, reliability, and optimal clinical validity.

Keywords: Laryngopharyngeal reflux; Reflux finding score; Reflux symptom index; Validation.