Abstract

OBJECTIVES: The Aging Voice Index (AVI) was developed to study quality of life in older adults with voice disorders. The purpose of this study was to translate the original English version of the AVI to Persian version of Aging Voice Index (P-AVI) and validate the P-AVI for the Persian-speaking older adults with voice disorders. METHODS: A cross-sectional, descriptive, and methodological study was performed to translate and validate the Persian version of the AVI. The translation was performed in accordance with recommendations from the World Health Organization. Eighty-five treatment-seeking patients with voice disorders and 20 older adults without voice complaints were recruited for this study. Psychometric properties were investigated, including: different types of validity (content validity, construct validity, and criterion-related validity), reliability (test-retest and internal consistency), and item analysis of the Persian version of AVI. The relationship between total score of P-AVI and age, sex, and voice pathology were determined using multiple linear regression. RESULTS: A panel of three speech pathologists performed the content validity of the P-AVI and reached agreement on all of the items. Construct validity was confirmed by a significant difference in the mean of total score of the P-AVI was identified between the particiapnts with voice disorders and those with no voice complaints (P < 0.001). There was high correlation between the total scores of the participants in the Persian version of the AVI and the Persian version of the voice-related quality of life (r=0.86, P < 0.001). All reliability measures were found to be good with scores higher than 0.8. To assess the need for item reduction, a Cronbach's alpha coefficient remained constant with the elimination of each item; therefore, all no items were removed. Age and voice pathology were not predictive for the total P-AVI score, but a weak effect was identified for sex and the total score of P-AVI (F=18.75, P < 0.001) with an R(2) of 0.21. CONCLUSIONS: The Persian version of AVI is a valid and reliable questionnaire designed specifically for older adults that speech-language pathologists and otolaryngologists can use to objectively assess the impact of voice disorders in aging Persian-speaking patients.