Translation and Linguistic Validation of Korean Version of the Bristol Female Lower Urinary Tract Symptom Instrument

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: With the aim of utilization in objectively assessing the symptom's severity and the treatment outcomes of urinary incontinence in Korean population, we translated the Bristol Female Lower Urinary Tract Symptom (BFLUTS) instrument into Korean which subsequently was linguistically validated. MATERIALS, METHODS AND RESULTS: Between May 2002 and December 2002, two bilinguists independently translated the original English version of BFLUTS into written Korean. A panel consisting of aforementioned translators and three authors reviewed the translations to form a single reconciled forward translation of the Korean version. Another bilingual translator who had never seen the original BFLUTS back-translated the first Korean version into English. The back-translation was subsequently assessed for equivalence to the original. Discrepancies between the original English form and the first draft Korean translation were reviewed by the panel. Cognitive debriefing interviews with five incontinent patients to test the interpretation of the translation were made. Summary of the changes from patient interviews were then reflected in the final Korean version. Finally, it was proofread to check spelling, grammar, layout and formatting. CONCLUSION: Translation and linguistic validation of Korean version of BFLUT instrument were completed. Further tests for psychometric performance are needed.