Saudi cultural adaptation of the “compliance questionnaire of Rheumatology” for Rheumatoid arthritis patients on disease modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs)

PURPOSE: This study aims to develop a valid and reliable Arabic version of the Compliance Questionnaire on Rheumatology (CQR-A) and to explore the impact of demographic factors on compliance. METHODS: This is a descriptive cross-sectional study carried out at the outpatient clinics of rheumatology in King Fahad hospital (KFH) in Madinah, Saudi Arabia, from May 2019 to October 2019. Initially, the original version was culturally adapted to an Arabic version by forward translation, backward translation, committee review of both the Arabic and the original versions, and lastly, pre-testing. Then, seventy-two rheumatoid arthritis patients were recruited to evaluate the reliability and validity of the CQR-A. Reliability was assessed by the test–retest method with a two-week interval through the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). The criterion validity of the CQR-A was assessed through Pearson correlation of pharmacy refill and CQR-A. The content validity index (CVI) was used to determine content validity. Multiple regression analysis was done to evaluate the effect of demographic factors on compliance. RESULTS: The CQR-A has adequate reliability and validity. The ICC = 0.757 with a 95% CI ranging from 0.579 to 0.860, p < 0.001, Cronbach’s alpha coefficient = 0.788. Pearson correlation coefficient was found to be (r = 0.338, p = 0.013). The individual content validity index (I-CVI) ranged from 0.67 to 1.00, and the average scale content validity index (S-CVI/Ave) = 0.91. Education was the only significant predictor of compliance amongst the demographic factors with R2 of 0.158. CONCLUSION: The Arabic version of the Compliance Questionnaire on Rheumatology (CQR-A) is a reliable and valid clinical tool to assess compliance in Arabic speaking patients.