Validation of translated Quality of Recovery-15 questionnaire in a south Indian population

Background: The Quality of Recovery – 15 (QoR-15) questionnaire has not been validated in an Indian population, so this study aimed to translate and then validate it in Kannada speaking surgical patients. Aims and Objectives: The objectives of our research were to assess the validity, reliability, responsiveness, and feasibility of Kannada translated edition of QoR-15 in Kannada speaking population undergoing elective surgery. Material and Methods: Consenting patients were instructed to fill their translated preoperative QoR-15 Kannada questionnaire on the previous day of surgery. They were approached again on postoperative day 1 to fill out their QoR-15 questionnaire. Global postoperative recovery was graded from 0-100 by the patient postoperatively. Results: The Pearson correlation between QoR-15 Kannada score and visual analog scale measuring postoperative recovery on a scale of 0-100 was found to be 0.74 (95% CI 0.87-1.17; p <0.01). Correlation between Kannada version of QoR-15 and extent of surgery in minutes was -0.67(95% CI: 0.17, -0.12, p <0.01). Correlation between postoperative QoR-15 Kannada score and days of admission was -0.61 (95% CI: - 6.35, - 4.13, p <0.01). Postoperative QoR-15 Kannada score in minor surgery was 113.13 ± 15.07, intermediate 110.6 ± 14.79 and major 88.74 ± 17.97 (p < 0.01), which decreased from minor to major. Cronbach's alpha coefficient was 0.89, split–half alpha was 0.83.The Cohen's effect size was 1.22 which is large and standardized response mean was 1.67. Majority (98.6%) of patients accomplished the research protocol successfully. Conclusion: The Kannada version of QoR-15 proved to be generalizable to an entirely different population than in which it was originally developed. The results show that the translated version is feasible, reliable, valid and responsive and it is an apt tool for measuring the recovery in Kannada speaking elective surgical patients.