title: Validity and Reliability of a French Version of Reflux Symptom Index.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To develop a French version of the Reflux Symptom Index (Fr-RSI) and to assess its internal consistency, reliability, and clinical validity.
  
  
  METHODS
  Controlled, prospective trial.
  
  
  METHODS
  Forty-four patients with a reflux finding score > 7 and an Fr-RSI > 13 were enrolled and treated with 20 mg of pantoprazole twice daily and diet changes for 3 months. Ninety asymptomatic subjects were also included in the study. To assess reliability, Fr-RSI was completed twice within a 7-day period. Validity was assessed by comparing Fr-RSI scores with scores from the Voice Handicap Index (VHI) in 24 of 44 patients, at baseline and at 3 months posttherapy.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The mean values of Fr-RSI at baseline and after 7 days were 20.17 ± 5.76 and 19.75 ± 7.08, respectively, for patients with laryngopharyngeal reflux (LPR) and 4.02 ± 3.49 and 3.71 ± 3.82, respectively, for controls. The test-retest reliability was high in patients with LPR (rBP= 0.78) and in healthy subjects (rBP= 0.80). Cronbach's alpha was 0.85, indicating high internal consistency. The mean Fr-RSI score significantly improved from a baseline of 20.17 ± 5.76 to 5.58 ± 3.65 after 3 months of treatment (P = 0.001), and the initial mean VHI total score significantly improved from 20.29 ± 19.62 to 12.87 ± 12.04 after treatment (P = 0.029), indicating validity of the results. However, of the subcategories of the VHI, only the mean physical score improved from a baseline of 11.19 ± 9.22 to 7.35 ± 5.96 after treatment (P = 0.016).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The Fr-RSI developed in this study demonstrated both reliability and validity. It can be easily administered to assist in diagnosing and monitoring of LPR in French-speaking patients.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Faculty of Medicine, UMONS Research Institute for Health Sciences and Technology, University of Mons (UMONS), Mons, Belgium; Laboratory of Phonetics, Faculty of Psychology, Research Institute for Language Sciences and Technology, University of Mons (UMONS), Mons, Belgium; Department of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery, RHMS Baudour, EpiCURA Hospital, Baudour, Belgium. Electronic address: Jerome.lechien@umons.ac.be.
authors.forename: Jérôme R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Lechien
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Phonetics, Faculty of Psychology, Research Institute for Language Sciences and Technology, University of Mons (UMONS), Mons, Belgium.
authors.forename: Kathy
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Huet
authors.affiliation: Department of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery, CHU de Liège, Université de Liège, Liège, Belgium.
authors.forename: Camille
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Finck
authors.affiliation: Department of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery, RHMS Baudour, EpiCURA Hospital, Baudour, Belgium.
authors.forename: Mohamad
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Khalife
authors.affiliation: Department of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery, RHMS Baudour, EpiCURA Hospital, Baudour, Belgium.
authors.forename: Anne-Françoise
authors.initials: AF
authors.lastname: Fourneau
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Phonetics, Faculty of Psychology, Research Institute for Language Sciences and Technology, University of Mons (UMONS), Mons, Belgium.
authors.forename: Véronique
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Delvaux
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Phonetics, Faculty of Psychology, Research Institute for Language Sciences and Technology, University of Mons (UMONS), Mons, Belgium.
authors.forename: Myriam
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Piccaluga
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Phonetics, Faculty of Psychology, Research Institute for Language Sciences and Technology, University of Mons (UMONS), Mons, Belgium.
authors.forename: Bernard
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Harmegnies
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Faculty of Medicine, UMONS Research Institute for Health Sciences and Technology, University of Mons (UMONS), Mons, Belgium; Department of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery, RHMS Baudour, EpiCURA Hospital, Baudour, Belgium.
authors.forename: Sven
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Saussez
mesh_terms: D053799:2-Pyridinylmethylsulfinylbenzimidazoles / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005602:France; D006801:Humans; D057045:Laryngopharyngeal Reflux / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000188:drug therapy; D008875:Middle Aged; D000077402:Pantoprazole; D011446:Prospective Studies; D054328:Proton Pump Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D053799:2-Pyridinylmethylsulfinylbenzimidazoles; D054328:Proton Pump Inhibitors; D000077402:Pantoprazole
keywords: Laryngopharyngeal; RSI; Reflux; Validation; Voice