Translation and validation into Brazilian Portuguese of the English version of the International Consultation on Incontinence Modular Questionnaire for Male Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms (ICIQ-MLUTS)

Abstract

Objectives: To translate and cross-culturally adapt the English version of the International Consultation on Incontinence Modular Questionnaire for Male Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms (ICIQ-MLUTS) into Brazilian Portuguese and evaluate its psychometric properties.

Introduction: Male lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) are frequent and commonly assessed with questionnaires. The ICIQ-MLUTS is a robust instrument that investigates the main aspects of LUTS in men and their impact on quality of life. Although highly recommended, Grade A is not as popular as the International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS) and remained untranslated and unvalidated for Brazilian Portuguese.

Methods: After authorization by the Advisory Board of the International Consultation on Incontinence (ICIQ) the translation process was conducted according to the standard guidelines and the ICIQ validation protocol. Internal consistency was assessed using Cronbach's ⍺ coefficient and values > 0.7 were considered satisfactory. To assess test-retest reliability and reproducibility, Spearman's correlation coefficient and intraclass correlation coefficient were used. For group data, a Spearman correlation coefficient or an intraclass correlation coefficient of at least 0.70 demonstrates good test-retest reliability. A p < 0.05 was considered significant.

Results: One hundred and eighty-six, aged 61.41 ± 11.01 years, suffering from LUTS participated in the study between January 2021 and October 2022. Cronbach's ⍺, 0.875, demonstrated the internal consistency of the Portuguese version of ICIQ-MLUTS. The intraclass correlation coefficient of 0.912 (0.882; 0.935 - 95% CI) for the test-retest evidenced the stability and validity of the instrument. Likewise, Spearman's correlation coefficient highlighted the agreement between IPSS and ICIQ-MLUTS, 0.906, <0.001.

Discussion: The Portuguese version of the ICIQ-MLUTS demonstrated internal consistency, stability, and validity, in addition to agreement with the IPSS.

Conclusion: The ICIQ-MLUTS, translated and validated into Brazilian Portuguese, is a robust and reliable instrument to assess LUTS in Brazilian men and can be used in the evaluation of treatment and research.

Keywords: Portuguese; cross-cultural adaptation; male lower urinary tract symptoms questionnaire; quality of life; translation; validation.