TRANSLATION AND DETERMINATION OF THE COMPREHENSIBILITY OF A LUGANDA VERSION OF ORAL MUCOSITIS DAILY QUESTIONNAIRE.

Abstract

Objective: This study aimed to translate, determine the comprehensibility and examine the linguistic equivalence of a Luganda Oral Mucositis Daily Questionnaire (OMDQ MTS) among patients undergoing chemotherapy.

Design: This was a validation study design in which bilingual patients who were receiving chemotherapy at Uganda cancer institute and had experienced some sort of oral discomfort after the start of their treatment were asked to complete OMDQ MTS Luganda followed by the English version on the same visit. The tools were administered at least two hours apart and had different item order.

Results and conclusions: Fifty participants accepted to take part by completing both versions of OMDQ MTS data. All item mean score differences between the two versions were less than ±0.25. The Cronbach's α for the Luganda and English versions were 0.78 and 0.86 based on standardized items while Guttman's lambada 2 and 3 were 0.89 and 0.79 respectively. A translated Luganda version of OMDQ MTS is reliable and easy to understand. Thus, it has the potential in being used to monitor mucositis among patients undergoing chemotherapy.