Cultural adaptation of the 5-D itch scale and its reliability for Brazilian burn survivors

Abstract

This was a methodological study whose objective was to culturally adapt the 5-D itch scale for Brazilian Portuguese and verify its practicability, acceptability and reliability for burn survivors. This study followed the five internationally recommended steps for the adaptation process: translation, synthesis, back translation, assessment by an expert committee and pretesting process; besides, an evaluation of its practicability, acceptability and reliability was conducted. The pretest was carried out with thirty burn survivors – hospitalized or on outpatient follow-up – from two public hospitals in the state of São Paulo. Most burn survivors were male (18; 60%), aged at mean of 39.2 (SD=11.1), with deep partial burn injuries (16; 59.3%), percentage of total burn surface area of 12.3 (SD=9.8); and most accidents occurred at domestic environment (18; 60%). The Brazilian version had semantic and idiomatic, conceptual and cultural equivalences, with a satisfactory content validity index for each item (CVI-I). Mean application time was 3.5minutes, acceptability was good, and there was evidence of reliability for the total score (0.793). The Brazilian version of the 5-D itch scale showed equivalence and evidence of reliability for assessing pruritus and its impact in burn survivors.