Reliability and Validity of the Adapted Chinese Version of the Satisfaction of Adolescents with Postoperative Pain Management – Idiopathic Scoliosis (SAP-S) Scale

STUDY DESIGN: A prospective study. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to evaluate the internal reliability and structure validity of an adapted simplified Chinese version of the Satisfaction of Adolescents with Postoperative pain management – idiopathic Scoliosis (SAP-S) scale in mainland China. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA: Pain management is a major issue for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) patients undergoing posterior spinal fusions. There is a lack of valid scales for evaluating patients’ satisfaction with postoperative pain management. The SAP-S was proven to be a valid and reliable measure in English and French. METHODS: The SAP-S was translated into Chinese according to the internationally recognized guidelines. A total of 95 AIS patients undergoing posterior fusion surgery completed the CSAP-S, along with other self-reported questionnaires, including the 36-Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) and Scoliosis Research Society-22 (SRS-22) questionnaires. The internal consistency, test–retest reliability, and construct validity of the CSAP-S were determined. RESULTS: The SAP-S was successfully translated into Chinese. All patients completed the CSAP-S twice and the other instruments. The CSAP-S had good internal consistency and test–retest reliability with Cronbach’s alpha coefficient measuring 0.895 and intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) measuring 0.97. Elimination of any one item did not result in a value of Cronbach’s alpha of <0.80. A good construct validity was shown by good correlation with bodily pain (r=0.883, p=0.004) and social functioning (r=0.786, p=0.002) domains of SF-36 and pain (r=0.752, p=0.001) and satisfaction with management (r=0.746, p=0.005) domains of SRS-22. CONCLUSION: The CSAP-S demonstrated good internal consistency, reliability, and construct validity, and may be used for the evaluation of AIS patients’ satisfaction with postoperative pain management in mainland China.