title: Validation of the Italian translation of the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Questionnaire.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Health-related quality of life is an important measure of treatment outcome; its evaluation requires the use of internationally validated ad hoc questionnaires. The McMaster Inflammatory Bowel Disease Questionnaire (IBDQ) is the most used specific instrument.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To assess the validity and reliability of the Italian translation of the IBDQ.
  
  
  METHODS
  The IBDQ underwent forward and backward translation; 13 patients were enrolled for cognitive testing of the Italian version to increase clarity. For field testing, 113 patients (65 with Crohn's disease and 48 with ulcerative colitis) completed both the IBDQ and the generic instrument 36-item Short Form Health Survey scale (SF-36).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Data quality was optimal with high completeness and low floor and ceiling effect. Item internal consistency was satisfied for 100% of patients, while discriminant validity showed a few items with higher correlations with other scales. Cronbach's alpha coefficient was 0.96. Test-retest correlations indicated good reliability (Pearson R 0.81). Exploratory factor analysis indicated that the original grouping of the item was suboptimal. The score proved sensitive to disease activity, gender and quality of life as measured by the SF-36.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The Italian translation of the McMaster Inflammatory Bowel Disease Questionnaire sounds natural and is easy to understand. A field test gave results comparable to other international validations, supporting its use in cross-national surveys.
authors.affiliation: Center for the Study and Cure of Inflammatory Bowel Disease, First Department of Medicine, IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo Foundation, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy. r.ciccocioppo@smatteo.pv.it
authors.forename: Rachele
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ciccocioppo
authors.forename: Catherine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Klersy
authors.forename: Maria Luisa
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Russo
authors.forename: Monica
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Valli
authors.forename: Vincenzo
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Boccaccio
authors.forename: Venerina
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Imbesi
authors.forename: Sandro
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ardizzone
authors.forename: Gabriele Bianchi
authors.initials: GB
authors.lastname: Porro
authors.forename: Gino Roberto
authors.initials: GR
authors.lastname: Corazza
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015212:Inflammatory Bowel Diseases / Q000523:psychology*; D007558:Italy; D007802:Language; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014175:Translating