title: Validity and reliability of the Persian version of the oral health impact profile (OHIP)-14.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The need for assessment of oral health related quality of life has been increased over the last decades. The aim of this study was to develop a Persian version of the Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP)-14 and to evaluate its reliability and validity for its use in Persian-speaking communities.
  
  
  METHODS
  The original version of the OHIP-14 was translated into the Persian language using the back-translation technique. To establish the reliability of the translated instrument, internal consistency and test-retest reliability trials were performed on 20 subjects (at 4-week intervals); Cronbach's alpha was used. One hundred sixty adults over 50 years of age who attended Health Care Centers in Sari and Babol were recruited to fill out the questionnaires and received a clinical examination by a single dentist. The socio-demographic and oral health information was also collected.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The test-retest reliability was excellent (Cronbach's alpha = 0.095). In the main study, Cronbach's reliability coefficient for all 14 questions in each dimension was more than 70%. The individuals in need of dental treatment showed significantly higher OHIP scores than the individuals not requiring treatment. The individuals with hopeless teeth, negative self-perceived oral had significantly higher OHIP scores.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The Persian version of the OHIP-14 is a comprehensive and accurate instrument with acceptable reliability and validity for measuring oral health-related quality of life.
authors.affiliation: Cellular & Molecular Biology Research Center, Babol University of Medical Sciences, Babol, Iran. ; Dental School, Babol University of Medical Sciences, Babol, Iran.
authors.forename: Mina
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Motallebnejad
authors.affiliation: Dental School, Babol University of Medical Sciences, Babol, Iran.
authors.forename: Hoora
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Hadian
authors.affiliation: Department of Prosthodontics, Dental School, Babol University of Medical Sciences, Babol, Iran.
authors.forename: Shervin
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Mehdizadeh
authors.affiliation: Department of Social Medicine and Health, Babol University of Medical Sciences, Babol, Iran.
authors.forename: Mahmoud
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hajiahmadi
keywords: OHIP-14; QOL questionnaire; Quality of life