Publication:

Transadaptation and validation of dysphagia handicap index in Bangla

Background The aim of this study was to transadapt and validate the Bangla version of DHI (DHI-B). The objective of the study was to translate and culturally adapt the Dysphagia Handicap Index (DHI) in Bangla language.

Methods Thirty individuals (mean age-42.23, SD±12.52) with dysphagia and an equal number of healthy individuals (mean age-28.23, SD±10.68) participated to fill up the questionnaire of DHI-B. Establishment of validity was done by comparing DHI-B scores of healthy controls and patients with dysphagia. Test–retest reproducibility, content validity and concurrent validity were established and internal consistency were used for reliability testing.

Results The overall Cronbach’s α for DHI-B was 0.84, indicating good internal consistency. Pearson’s correlation on test–retest reliability of DHI-B was found to be 0.9. Correlation that achieved between subscales of DHI-B and total DHI-B was analysed using Pearson’s correlation which was found very high. Compared to the dysphagic group, the control group showed significantly lower scores for all scales.

Conclusion From this study it was concluded that DHI-B showed good internal consistency, test-retest reliability, and concurrent validity. Therefore, it could be claimed that for assessment of dysphagia related handicap in Bangla, DHI-B is a reliable and valid tool.