Development and Validation of the Voice Handicap Index-10 (VHI-10) in Hindi

Any changes in voice can affect the quality of life by limiting the individual in activity participation. It is important to evaluate the individual's perception about their changes in voice rather than any objective measures. Despite of 43.63% Hindi speaking population in India there was no any self-assessment scale on which individual can express their functional, physical and emotional related impact due to voice disorder. To adapt and validate self-assessment tool Voice Handicap Index (VHI)-10 in Hindi. In this cross-sectional study, items were taken from VHI-10 English and were adapted in HindiVHI-10 Hindi was administered on participants after taking consent, these were taken from ENT outpatient, private clinic, speech and language department. Tool has been administered on 242 subjects consists of Group I- Control group and Group II- Dysphonic group. the study was completed in three phases: I Translation and Adaptation, II Administration, III Standardization. Out of total ten items, seven items were changed for better comprehensibility. The validity score (0.97) was highly significant, even difference between scores of both the groups were statistically significant (p = 0.001). The correlation of age and gender was not significantly observed. The adapted VHI-10 Hindi is a valid and reliable tool for assessing the impact of voice disorders across three domains: Functional, Physical, and Emotional. It helps to understand how changes in voice affect an individual's daily life beyond just the pathological aspects, thereby guiding tailored management strategies.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12070-024-05317-z.