The Newcastle Laryngeal Hypersensitivity Questionnaire: Translation and Cross-Cultural Adaptation to the Arabic...

This study aims to validate and assess the reliability of the Arabic version of the Newcastle Laryngeal Hypersensitivity Questionnaire (LHQ) as a self-reported questionnaire for patients with laryngeal hypersensitivity syndrome (LHS).

A prospective, observational, cross-sectional study was conducted in the ear, nose and throat Department of Kafr Elsheikh University Hospitals.

The preliminary Arabic version of the LHQ (LHQ-Ar) was created using a rigorous forward and backward translation method. Native Arabic-speaking patients visiting outpatient pulmonology, speech pathology, and ear, nose and throat clinics in this tertiary referral center were invited to participate. Participants were divided into two groups: group 1, comprising patients with LHS, and group 2, consisting of healthy controls. All participants completed the LHQ-Ar questionnaire twice, with a two-week interval, to assess test-retest reliability. Additionally, LHS patients completed the Arabic Voice Handicap Index-10 to examine correlations with LHQ-Ar scores. The LHQ-Ar underwent rigorous testing for internal consistency, reliability, validity, sensitivity, and specificity to establish it as a validated patient questionnaire.

The KMO test (KMO = 0.955) and Bartlett's test (P < 0.001) confirmed the sample's adequacy. The analysis identified only one factor with an eigenvalue greater than one, which explained 63.4% of the total variance. Items 13 (0.372) and 14 (0.306), which had commonalities below 0.5, were excluded. The final model, consisting of 12 items, accounted for 68.7% of the variance. Cronbach's alpha coefficients ranged from 0.933 to 0.988 for individual items and 0.995 for the total score, indicating excellent internal consistency.

The Arabic version of the Newcastle LHQ (LHQ-Ar) proves to be a reliable and valid tool for assessing LHS in Arabic-speaking populations. The LHQ-Ar shows strong internal consistency, test-retest reliability, and good sensitivity and specificity in predicting LHS, thus making it a valuable instrument for clinical use and research in Arabic-speaking patients.