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Validity, reliability, and interpretability of the Brazilian urticaria control test
Sérgio Duarte Dortas Junior1, Solange Oliveira Rodrigues Valle2, Karsten Weller3
1From the Serviço de Imunologia, Hospital Universitário Clementino Fraga Filho (HUCFF-UFRJ), Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil, Universidade Iguaçu (UNIG), Nova Iguaçu, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
The Brazilian Urticaria Control Test (UCT) is a valid and reliable tool for assessing chronic urticaria (CU) disease control. Both short and long forms demonstrated excellent reliability and validity, suggesting the short form can replace the long form.
Area of Science:
- Dermatology
- Clinical Research
- Patient-Reported Outcomes
Background:
- The Urticaria Control Test (UCT) is a patient-reported outcome measure for chronic urticaria (CU).
- A Brazilian version of the UCT was developed, but its psychometric properties were unestablished.
- This study aimed to validate the Brazilian UCT short form (UCTsh) and long form (UCTlg).
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the validity and reliability of the Brazilian UCT short form (UCTsh) and long form (UCTlg) in patients with chronic urticaria (CU).
- To evaluate the correlation between the Brazilian UCT versions and established urticaria activity scores.
- To determine the suitability of the UCTsh as a replacement for the UCTlg.
Main Methods:
- Clinimetric properties of the Brazilian UCTsh and UCTlg were evaluated in 130 CU patients.
- Urticaria Activity Scores (UAS7 and UAS28) were used for concurrent validity assessment.
- Test-retest reliability was assessed in a subsample of 27 patients.
Main Results:
- Both Brazilian UCT versions exhibited excellent internal consistency and test-retest reliability.
- Strong correlations were found between Brazilian UCT results and UAS7/UAS28, indicating high convergent validity.
- Results suggest the UCTsh can substitute for the UCTlg without altering disease control assessment outcomes.
Conclusions:
- The Brazilian UCT (both forms) is a valid and reliable instrument for evaluating disease control in chronic urticaria (CU) patients.
- The UCTsh is a suitable alternative to the UCTlg, simplifying assessment.
- A cutoff score of ≥12 points for the UCTsh is proposed for defining well-controlled disease, aligning with international standards.
