Cross-cultural adaptation and validation of the Child-OIDP index in Brazil

Measures of oral health-related quality of life are being increasingly used in clinical trials to introduce dimensions excluded by normative measures. Consequently, there is a need for an index which evaluates children's oral health-related quality of life validated for Brazilian population. This index would be useful in the application of oral health needs assessments and the evaluation of oral health programs, services and technologies. Objectives: The aim of this study was to accomplish an accurate cross-cultural adaptation of the Child-OIDP index, and assess its reliability and validity for application among Brazilian children between the ages of eleven and fourteen. Methods: For cross-cultural adaptation, we applied a translation/back-translation method integrated with expert panel reviews. A total of 342 students from four public schools took part of the study. Results: Overall, 80.7% of the sample reported at least one oral impact in the last three months. In terms of reliability analysis, Cronbach's alpha was 0.63, the weighted kappa 0.76, and the ICC 0.79. The index had a significant association with self-reported health measurements (self-rated oral health, satisfaction with oral health, perceived dental treatment needs, self-rated general health; all <0.01). Conclusions: It was concluded that the Child-OIDP index is a valid and reliable measure of oral health-related quality of life in Brazilian children.

Research supported by FAPERJ grant APQ1 E-26/171.495/2004.