Cross-Cultural Translation of the Adolescent Menstrual Bleeding Questionnaire (AMBQ)

Aim: Heavy menstrual bleeding (HMB) affects up to 37% of adolescents. Given the paucity of available tools to assess health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in adolescents with HMB, we developed the adolescent menstrual bleeding questionnaire (aMBQ), a valid and reliable measure of bleeding-related quality of life. The aim of this study was cross-cultural translation and adaptation of the English aMBQ into French to ensure accessibility for more Canadian adolescents who menstruate.

Methods: A five-step process was followed: (1) forward translation from English to Canadian French; (2) backward translation from French to English; (3) review of source and translated aMBQ to create a reconciled version; (4) cognitive debriefing to ensure linguistic and clinical equivalence and (5) review of cognitive debriefings to produce the final version of the French aMBQ. Results of cognitive debriefings were reviewed after every three participants; items were revised if presented as an issue by ≥2 participants. These changes were implemented and tested in cognitive debriefings until saturation was reached.

Results: Linguistic changes were made to nine (33%) of the questions and one (3.7%) answer options. Major changes were made to four of the 27 questions (15%), and minor changes were made to five of the 27 questions (19%).

Conclusion: Professional translators, clinical experts and patient input through cognitive debriefing are pivotal to successful cross-cultural translation. Results of cognitive debriefing interviews suggest the French aMBQ is easily understood and confirms its face validity.