Spanish Translation and Validation of the LIMB-Q: A Patient-reported Outcome Measure for Lower Extremity Trauma

Hispanic patients represent a notable portion of the adult trauma population in the United States, yet their participation in studies collecting patient-reported outcome measure data following lower extremity injuries is limited. This study aims to translate and linguistically validate the LIMB-Q in Spanish for use in this population.

We followed guidelines from the World Health Organization and the Professional Society for Health Economics and Outcomes Research to conduct this translation. Two independent translators conducted a blind forward translation of the LIMB-Q from English to Spanish, followed by a back translation to confirm the conceptual preservation of each LIMB-Q item. Five patients then participated in cognitive debriefing interviews to collect feedback on comprehension, interpretation, and language.

Translators occasionally differed in the vocabulary they used in their forward translations. All conflicts were resolved by discussion and selection of the option with the greatest colloquial recognition and medical relevance. Back translation identified 25 differences, including items that did not fully convey semantics (n = 12), were missing parts (n = 9), or were listed out of order (n = 4). All items with inadequate semantics were revised to ensure full retention of their original meaning. Five patients participated in cognitive debriefing interviews, resulting in 5 revisions for diction and syntax.

The Spanish (US) translation of LIMB-Q is now available. This instrument may be used in both clinical and research settings to better understand the quality of life and satisfaction of Hispanic patients after traumatic lower extremity injury.