Translation and validation of the traditional Chinese version of the faecal incontinence quality of life scale

Psychometric evaluation with tools such as the faecal incontinence quality of life scale is an essential component of clinical assessment. Currently, there is no translated Traditional Chinese version of the scale. A validated translated version may help to improve the quality of healthcare received in countries with Chinese minorities (0.5, 1.2 and 4.0 % of the UK, USA and Australian population, respectively) as well as local population of Hong Kong. The purpose of this study is to validate the Traditional Chinese version of the faecal incontinence quality of life scale (FIQL). The FIQL questionnaire was translated into Traditional Chinese Language followed by linguistic validation. It was then tested on 55 patients with faecal incontinence and 93 controls in the colorectal outpatients clinic. Faecal incontinence severity index was also used for the assessment of disease severity. Internal consistency was good/excellent for all scales (Cronbach’s alpha >0.70, between 0.71 and 0.93). The intra-class correlation indicated a high stability over time with coefficients ranging between 0.78 and 0.90. Test and retest of all four scales found no significant differences of mean scores between baseline and retest. The mean faecal incontinence quality of life scale scores of all four domains improved significantly after treatment of 10 patients whose faecal incontinence severity index scores decreased by 50 % of their pre-treatment scores, hence indicating good sensitivity. This study demonstrates the linguistic and psychometric validity of the traditional Chinese version of the faecal incontinence quality of life scale.