Cross-Cultural Adaptation and Reliability Testing of Chinese Version of the Living with Medicines Questionnaire in Elderly Patients with Chronic Diseases

BACKGROUND: The Living with Medicines Questionnaire (LMQ-3) is a reliable, valid instrument used to assess the medication-related burden of patients with chronic disease using long-term medication, but it has not been used in China. PURPOSE: To translate and cross-culturally adapt the LMQ-3 into Chinese and assess its reliability and validity among elderly patients with chronic disease. METHODS: After translation and back-translation, views from an expert group and cognitive interviews with elderly persons using multiple medicines were used to ensure the cultural relevance of the LMQ-3. Then, 412 participants aged 60–92 years were recruited from three communities in Zhengzhou to complete the instrument. Item analysis, internal consistency, content validity, exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and reliability testing were performed. RESULTS: Item analysis identified nine items for possible removal, which were discussed with the originating team. Internal consistency testing confirmed the suitability of removing two of these items, which concurred with the views of the expert group and cognitive interviews. All other items were retained, but four were modified for clarification without changing their meaning, resulting in a 39-item instrument. EFA of this 39-item measure yielded an eight-factor model, similar to the English version. Cronbach’s alpha of the Chinese version of LMQ-3 (C-LMQ-3) for elderly patients with chronic diseases was 0.855, and alpha values for the eight domains ranged from 0.822 to 0.932. Test–retest reliability was satisfactory, with ICC values for the eight domain scores ranging from 0.751 to 0.881. CONCLUSION: With only minor modifications compared to the English version, the 39-item C-LMQ-3 is a valid tool, with adequate reliability, which can be used to assess the medication-related burden of long-term use of multiple medicines in elderly patients in China.