Development and validation of a Chinese translated questionnaire: A single simultaneous tool for assessing gastrointestinal and upper respiratory tract related illnesses in pre-school children

OBJECTIVES: Children are prone to contagious illnesses that come from peers in nurseries, kindergartens, and day care centres. The administration of probiotics has been reported to decrease the episodes of such illnesses, leading to decreased absences and consumption of antibiotics. With less emphasis on, and preferences for, blood collection from young subjects, quantifiable data are merely obtained from surveys and questionnaires. Malaysia has a population which is 25% ethnic Chinese. We aimed to develop a single tool that enables simultaneous assessments of both gastrointestinal and respiratory tract-related illnesses among young Chinese children. METHODS: The English-language validated questionnaires using data about demographics and monthly health records were translated into the Chinese language. Both forward and backward translated versions were validated. RESULTS: The developed demographic and monthly health questionnaires showed an overall item-level content validity index (I-CVI) of 0.99 and 0.97, respectively; while the translated Chinese versions showed I-CVI of 0.97 and 0.98, respectively. Item-level of response process validity index of 1.00 for this questionnaire was obtained from 30 respondents inferring that the items were clear and comprehensible. CONCLUSIONS: This study showed acceptable levels validity in the Chinese translated version, illustrating a valid and reliable tool to be used for simultaneous assessment of gastrointestinal and respiratory tract-related illnesses in young children that is applicable for Malaysia's Chinese population and other Chinese-speaking nations.