Health-related quality-of-life questionnaire for women with polycystic ovary syndrome: a Chinese translation and validation study.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the reliability, validity, and responsiveness of the Chinese version of the polycystic ovary syndrome questionnaire (PCOSQ).

DESIGN: Translation and validation study.

SETTING: Gynaecology clinic and paediatric adolescent gynaecology clinic at the study institute.

POPULATION: Chinese women, 16 years of age or older, with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).

METHODS: Women completed the Chinese version of the PCOSQ and the Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36). Their sociodemographic details, clinical parameters, and biochemical results were recorded. A subset of 50 women repeated the PCOSQ 1 week later to evaluate test-retest reliability. Women subsequently received treatment for the symptoms of PCOS. Six months later, 100 women completed the PCOSQ and clinical parameters were assessed to evaluate the responsiveness of the PCOSQ.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Internal reliability, test-retest reliability, convergent validity, criterion validity, and responsiveness.

RESULTS: A total of 262 Chinese women completed the study. Values of Cronbach's alpha coefficient were all above 0.7, demonstrating a good standard of internal consistency in all subscales. For the test-retest reliability, intraclass correlation coefficients showed excellent stability among the subscales (range 0.82-0.92, P < 0.001). Convergent validity was demonstrated by positive correlations with the subscales of SF-36 and clinical parameters like body mass index (BMI), waist-hip ratio (WHR), hirsutism score, menstrual regularity, and infertility, and the respective subscales. Improvement in PCOSQ scores was seen in women with improvements in BMI and menstrual patterns; however, these findings did not reach statistical significance.

CONCLUSIONS: The Chinese version of PCOSQ is reliable and valid for use in women with PCOS.

TWEETABLE ABSTRACT: The Chinese version of the PCOSQ is reliable and valid for use.