Quality of Life in Multiple Sclerosis Patients With Urinary Disorders: Reliability and Validity of the Turkish Version of Qualiveen

Background: Multiple sclerosis (MS) results in a wide range of functional limitations that can lead to multiple disabilities. Symptoms arising from bladder dysfunction can profoundly affect various aspects of an individual's daily life. Therefore, in determining bladder problems and initiating the appropriate treatment, there is increasing interest in the use of well-constructed questionnaires studying quality of life.The aim of the study was to demonstrate the reliability and validity of the Qualiveen scale in Turkish language in patients with MS.Methods: Thirty seven MS patients with urinary problems were included in the study. For analysis of test-retest reliability, Turkish version of Qualiveen scale developed by “translation-back translation” method was performed to patients on the day of admission and one week after admission. To assess validity, patients were also evaluated with the Multiple Sclerosis Quality of Life Scale (MQoL-54) and Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS)Results: Internal consistency (Intraclass correlation coefficient: 0.81-0.92) and test-retest reliability (Cronbach alpha score: 0.82-0.92) of Qualiveen were found to be high. All the sub-scores of Qualiveen questionnaire, except for the limitations sub-score, showed a significant correlation with MQoL-54 Physical Health (p<0.05). In addition, all the sub-scores of Qualiveen questionnaire, except for inconvenience and limitations sub-scores, showed a significant correlation with MQoL-54 Mental Health (p<0.05). Moreover, a significant correlation was found between all sub-scores of Qualiveen questionnaire and EDSS (p<0.05).Conclusion: The Turkish Qualiveen questionnaire is a comprehensive questionnaire for quality of life evaluations in patients with urinary dysfunction that has proved to be useful for MS patients.