Reliability and Validity of Gujarati Version of the Vertigo Symptom Scale – Short form in Menopausal Women

Abstract

Background: Vertigo, a sensation of dizziness and spinning, can occur in menopausal women due to hormonal changes. To measure these vertigo symptoms, a tool called the Vertigo Symptom Scales Short-form (VSS-SF) is commonly used. The VSS-SF is currently not available in Gujarati language so there is a need to develop a scale which can be used by the Gujarati language speaking population. Material & method: An observational study was conducted, translating the scale VSS-SF comprises 15 items, each scored on a 5-point scale (0–4) into Gujarati through double forward and backward translation. Experts scored each question as accepted or rejected. The finalized Gujarati version's reliability were assessed with a sample of 20 menopausal women. Result: Result calculated by using SPSS. The Gujarati version of the VSS-SF has high internal consistency (Cronbach’s α=0.873). Conclusion: The translation of the VSS-SF into Gujarati successfully maintained the semantic and measurement properties of the original version. The resulting Gujarati version proved to be a valid and reliable scale for assessing vertigo symptoms in the Gujarati population. Keywords: VSS-sf, Menopausal women, Reliability, Validity