the persian version of skindex-29 health-related quality of life index: translation and psychometric validation

Background: dermatologic diseases have considerable effects on patients’ healthrelated quality of life (hrqol). the assessment of diseases’ effects on patients’ lives is an important component of disease management. although skindex-29 is one of the most utilized measures for assessing dermatology-specific hrqol, there is no persian version of it in iran. this study aimed to translate skindex-29 into persian and assess its psychometric properties. methods: the study was a methodological study, carried out to examine the psychometric properties and factor structure of the persian version of skindex-29. the translation was conducted based on mapi guidelines. in total, 200 dermatologic patients filled in the dermatology life quality index and the persian version of skindex-29. internal consistency reliability was assessed using cronbach alpha. convergent validity and known-group validity were evaluated. exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were conducted to test construct validity. results: the final translated version was comprehensible and cronbach alpha was 0.967. skindex-29 total score and its subscales exhibited strong correlations with the dermatology life quality index. known-group validity was supported by the difference between the mild and severe disease groups (p<0.05). factor analyses identified three well-fitting factors like the original version, which accounted for 69.95% of the variance of the instrument. conclusion: this study developed an adequate persian version of skindex-29, which can be used as a valid and reliable hrqol instrument to study iranian dermatologic patients.