Objective: The purpose of this study was to translate, cross-culturally adapt, and assess the reliability and validity of the Pelvic Girdle Questionnaire (PGQ) in pregnant Nepalese women.

Methods: The cross-cultural adaptation process was conducted according to the Guillemin guidelines. Reliability and validity were assessed using cross-sectional design. The participants responded to questionnaires of sociodemographics, the Nepali version of the PGQ, the Oswestry Disability Index, the Patient-Specific Functional Scale, the 5-item version of the Edinburgh Depression Scale, and the Numerical Pain Rating Scale. The internal consistency was assessed with Cronbach's alpha. The test-retest reliability was calculated using the intraclass correlation coefficient and smallest detectable change. Construct validity was assessed by testing 9 a priori hypotheses that examine correlations between the PGQ activity and symptom subscales, and also among the PGQ subscales and Oswestry Disability Index, Numerical Pain Rating Scale, Patient-Specific Functional Scale, and 5-item version of the Edinburgh Depression Scale. Spearman and Pearson's correlation were used to assess the correlations.

Results: A sample of 111 pregnant women were included in the study. The Cronbach's alpha for the Nepali version of the total PGQ was good (α = 0.83), and the test-retest reliability was acceptable (ICC_2.1, 0.72) with a measurement error of SDC_95% 18.6 points. Seven of the 9 hypotheses found support, which confirms acceptable construct validity of the Nepali PGQ.

Conclusion: The Nepali version of the PGQ is a reliable and valid tool for assessing pelvic girdle pain in pregnant Nepalese women.

Author keywords: Translational Adaptation; Women; Health, Pregnancy; Pelvic Girdle Pain; Pelvic Pain; Low Back Pain; Outcome Measures; Psychometric Properties; Reliability; Validity; Nepal

Author affiliations: RSA, BK: Department of Physiotherapy, Kathmandu University School of Medical Sciences, Kathmandu University Dhulikhel Hospital, Kavre, Nepal; ATT: Department of Physiotherapy, Faculty of Health Sciences, Oslo Metropolitan University, Oslo, Norway; MG: Department of Physiotherapy, Faculty of Health Sciences, Oslo Metropolitan University, Oslo, Norway; FORMI, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway; RK: Department of Medicine, Kathmandu University School of Medical Sciences, Kathmandu University Dhulikhel Hospital, Kavre, Nepal; MEG: Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Norway; Health Services Research Unit, Akershus University Hospital, Lorenskog, Norway; Department of Child Health, Norwegian Institute of Public Health, Oslo, Norway; BS: Division of Orthopedic Surgery, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway

This abstract is reproduced with the permission of the publisher; full text is available by subscription. Click on the above link and select a publisher from PubMed's LinkOut feature.