Validation and inter-rater reliability testing of the Arabic version of speech intelligibility rating among children with cochlear implant

OBJECTIVES: To validate and assess the reliability of the new version of an Arabic speech intelligibility rating among different raters. METHODS: This cross-sectional analysis was carried out between December 2018 and January 2019. Thirty cochlear-implant (CI) children (study group) and 30 subjects (control group) were enrolled. Study candidates’ speech skills were evaluated using the translated Arabic SIR by parents and original SIR by professions such as speech-language pathologists (SLPs). Inter-rater agreement, test–retest reliability, pre- and post-intervention score (responsiveness test), patient versus control score comparison (discriminant validity), and cross-validation of Arabic SIR have all been assessed. RESULTS: There was a good sense of agreement between the post-operative SIR parents’ assessments and the professional SLPs’ assessments (r=0.920, p<0.001). The mean of study subjects pre- and post-implantation score of Arabic SIR showed a statistically significant difference (p<0.001). CONCLUSION: The Arabic SIR demonstrated excellent reliability with strong consistency. It showed its clinical ability in distinguishing healthy subjects from patients along with follow up of speech development skills over time. The Arabic SIR can be used by parents to evaluate post-CI progress of their children.