Paralysis Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Paralysis, including details on treatment, diagnosis, facial paralysis, sleep paralysis.

Assessment of Chinese-version voice outcome survey in patients with unilateral vocal cord paralysis.

Fang TJ, Li HY, Gliklich RE, Chen YH, Wang PC

Department of Otolaryngology, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Keelung, Taiwan.

BACKGROUND: To develop a Mandarin Chinese outcome measure for the assessment of quality of life among unilateral vocal cord paralysis (UVCP) patients. METHODS: Voice Outcome Survey (VOS) was translated into Mandarin Chinese using a parallel model. The Chinese (Taiwan) version of the VOS (CVOS) was administered to 48 patients with symptomatic UVCP in a prospective manner; the CVOS was validated according to established criteria for reliability, validity, and longitudinal sensitivity. RESULTS: CVOS demonstrates moderate test-retest reliability (r = 0.59, P < 0.001) and internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = 0.63). CVOS significantly correlates with most of the subscales in the Mandarin Chinese (Taiwan) version of 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36) with only two exceptions (GH, general health; VT, vitality). The standardized response mean for the CVOS total score is 1.91, indicating excellent sensitivity to detect clinical changes. CONCLUSIONS: Performance characteristics of the CVOS are equivalent to the English-version VOS. CVOS is a valid tool to evaluate adults with UVCP-related problems among Chinese-speaking populations.

Published 4 May 2007 in Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg, 136(5): 752-756.
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