Psychometric evaluation of the Swedish version of the Hypoglycaemia Fear Survey.
OBJECTIVE
The objective of this study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Swedish version of the Hypoglycaemia Fear Survey (Swe-HFS) for use among Swedish-speaking patients with type 1 diabetes.


METHODS
The HFS was translated using the forward-backward translation method and was thereafter answered by 325 type 1 patients. The psychometric properties were investigated using exploratory factor analysis, Cronbach's alpha, content and convergent validity.


RESULTS
The factor analysis showed that a three-factor solution was reasonable with the subscales Behaviour/Avoidance (10 items), Worry (6 items) and Aloneness (4 items). Cronbach's alpha coefficient for the total score was 0.85. The result also supports the instrument's content validity and convergent validity.


CONCLUSIONS
The Swedish version of the HFS appears to be a reliable and valid instrument for measuring fear of hypoglycaemia (FoH) in type 1 patients.


CONCLUSIONS
The results from this study suggest that the Swe-HFS, an instrument that is brief and easy to administer, may be valuable in clinically assessing FoH among patients with type 1 diabetes.
Anderbro
Therese
T
Karolinska Institutet, Department of Clinical Sciences, Danderyd Hospital, Division of Internal Medicine, Stockholm, Sweden. therese.anderbro@ki.se
Amsberg
Susanne
S
Wredling
Regina
R
Lins
Per-Eric
PE
Adamson
Ulf
U
Lisspers
Jan
J
Johansson
Unn-Britt
UB
D015190:Blood Glucose Self-Monitoring / Q000523:psychology*; D003922:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1 / Q000523:psychology*; D005163:Factor Analysis, Statistical; D005239:Fear; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007003:Hypoglycemia / Q000523:psychology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008960:Models, Psychological; D011594:Psychometrics; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013548:Sweden