Translation and validation of the “Smell Diskettes” Olfaction Test into Arabic

Abstract

Objective: This study aims to translate and validate the 'Smell Diskettes' screening tool from English into Arabic. The significance of this study stems from the lack of reliable and rapid olfaction screening tests available to Arabic speaking patients and healthcare practitioners. Methods: This is a prospective cohort, multi-center study. A forward-backward translation of the olfaction screening test was done to translate the text into Arabic. Data was collected from two groups: a control group (n=125) of which 84 percent were females (n=105) and a mean age of 22.4 of subjectively normosmic individuals from Alfaisal University and a patients group (n=82) of which 35.4 percent females (n = 29) with a mean age of 38.2, all of whom were diagnosed with olfactory disturbances related to rhinological pathologies, from King Abdulaziz University Hospital (KAUH) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. One of the limitations we faced due to convenience sampling and COVID-19 pandemic restrictions was the inability to perform a “test-retest” on study subjects. Results: The study included 207 subjects, out of whom 82 (40 percent) were patients from the rhinology clinic at King Abdulaziz University Hospital (KAUH) and 125 (60 percent) were recruited as controls from Alfaisal University. The average olfaction scores for the control group and the patients’ group were 7/8 and 5/8, respectively. Conclusion: This study has determined that the Arabic-language version is a valid and useful instrument used in clinical practice and for research purposes. The development of this tool will allow more patients in Arabic-speaking countries to be screened for olfactory disturbances.