title: Neck and back pain specific outcome assessment questionnaires in the Spanish language: a systematic literature review.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Accurate measurement of functional improvement in clinical practice is becoming increasingly recognized as essential in demonstrating whether patients are deriving meaningful benefit from care. Several simple questionnaires have been developed for this purpose. The majority of these have been developed in English. In North America, there is a growing need for clinical tools, including outcome assessment tools that are available in the Spanish language.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of this study was to systematically review the literature regarding spine-specific outcome assessment questionnaires that are available in Spanish and to examine the evidence on their clinical utility.
  
  
  METHODS
  Systematic review.
  
  
  METHODS
  The Medline, CINAHL, Embase, and MANTIS databases were searched for any studies on the topic of outcome assessment questionnaires in the Spanish language. Relevant articles were reviewed, and the data on reliability, validity, time to completion, and any other properties of the questionnaire was extracted.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The search strategy identified 287 articles, of which 10 were deemed relevant. With regard to neck pain, data were found regarding Spanish translations of the Northwick Park Neck Pain Questionnaire, Neck Disability Index (NDI), and Core Outcome Measure for neck pain. With regard to low back pain, data were found regarding Spanish translations of the Oswestry Low Back Pain Disability Index (ODI), Roland Morris Disability Questionnaire (RMQ), and the North American Spine Society-American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons questionnaire.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Several reliable and valid outcome assessment questionnaires are available in the Spanish language. All were originally developed in English. It appears from the data reviewed that the most useful instruments are the NDI for neck pain patients and the ODI and RMQ for low back pain patients. The current trend is for the development of culturally adapted versions of these questionnaires that are specific to a particular country or region.
authors.affiliation: Rhode Island Spine Center, 600 Pawtucket Ave., Pawtucket, RI 02860, USA; Department of Family Medicine, Alpert Medical School of Brown University, 222 Richmond St, Providence, RI 02903, USA; Department of Research, New York Chiropractic College, 2360 New York 89, Seneca Falls, NY 13148, USA. Electronic address: rispine@aol.com.
authors.forename: Donald R
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Murphy
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lopez
mesh_terms: D001416:Back Pain / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D019547:Neck Pain / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy*; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D010147:Pain Measurement; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014177:Translations
keywords: Low back pain; Neck pain; Outcome assessment; Treatment outcome