Development and Standardization of Tinnitus Severity Index Questionnaire (TSIQ) in Bangla

Abstract

Psychometric validation is the study of determining internal consistency reliability and validity. Self-rating questionnaires are often used to assess severity of tinnitus. These questionnaires should be administered in the respondent’s native language to obtain accurate responses. There is no self rating questionnaire in Bangla language to assess severity of tinnitus. The Tinnitus Severity Index Questionnaire (TSIQ) is one of the most used questionnaires. The aim of this study is to develop and standardize the TSIQ in Bangla, to investigate the complex interface of tinnitus with quality of life and psychological distress of the patients with tinnitus. A total of 30 native Bangla speaking adults (equally fluent in Bangla and English) with and without hearing loss, in the age range of 20 to 60 years and with a complaint of tinnitus for a minimum of 6 months participated in the study. Validity was tested by administering TSIQ-English and TSIQ-Bangla to the participants. Correlation coefficient =0.882, shows good correlation between the two different versions of the same questionnaires. Test-Retest reliability was 0.934. Correlation between THI-Bangla version and TSIQ-Bangla was significant (correlation coefficient=0.743). Thus TSIQ-Bangla is a valid and reliable tool.