Arabic Translation, Cross Cultural Adaptation, and Validation of Foot Health Status Questionnaire Among Saudi Individuals with Plantar Fasciitis

Abstract

Background Measuring quality of life (QoL) plays an essential role in enabling meaningful cross-cultural comparisons. The Foot Health Status Questionnaire (FHSQ) is a valid tool for assessing both foot-specific and general health-related quality of life (HrQoL), making it suitable for evaluating Plantar Fasciitis (PF) patients. Methodology: The aim of this study is to translate the FHSQ into Arabic following methodological assessments of the translation procedure. The translation was done using forward and back translation. A pre-test questionnaire was distributed among 50 patients, resulting in the final FHSQ-Ar version which then underwent various psychometric evaluations among 87 person with PF, including internal consistency, dimensionality, reliability, interpretability, and construct validity against the 100mm Visual Analogue Scale (VAS). Results Internal consistency was adequate, ranging from 0.70 to 0.92. Reliability values ranged from 0.69 to 0.80, with poor standard error of measurement (individual) but acceptable standard error of measurement (group). Two domains exhibited floor effects while one domain showed a ceiling effect. Regarding validity, all hypothesized correlations with VAS scores were confirmed. Factor analysis revealed four dimensions, and confirmatory factor analysis demonstrated good fit (comparative fit index = 0.98, standardized root mean square = 0.06). Conclusion The psychometric properties of FHSQ-Ar were satisfactory. Further validation in other diseases may be warranted.