Validation and Adaptation of the “Modified Transplant Symptom Occurrence and Symptom Distress Scale” for Kidney Transplant Recipients

The aim was to adapt and validate the Modified Transplant Symptom Occurrence and Symptom Distress Scale (MTSOSD-59R) for kidney transplant recipients undergoing immunosuppressive therapy in Korea. The MTSOSD-59R has been used with solid organ transplant recipients globally to assess the adverse effects of immunosuppressive medication. A descriptive cross-sectional design was used. MTSOSD-59R was first translated, and pilot tested. Next, content validity was established with nine organ transplant experts. Then, from October 2017 to October 2018, the Korean MTOSOSD-59R was administered to a convenience sample of 122 kidney transplant recipients recruited from a single center. Ridit analysis was used to measure symptom occurrence and distress. The known-group approach was used to test the construct validity using Mann–Whitney U tests for between-group comparisons. The content validity index for MTSOSD-59R was 0.98, and known-group validity was confirmed. The split-half Spearman–Brown corrected reliability coefficient was 0.902 for symptom occurrence and 0.893 for symptom distress. The four most frequent and distressing symptoms were fatigue, lack of energy, thinning hair, and erectile dysfunction (male). Results suggest this Korean MTSOSD-59R adaptation has adequate language, construct validity, and reliability to gather meaningful information from kidney transplant recipients in Korea.