Translation, cross-cultural adaptation, and validation of the Vulvar Pain Assessment Questionnaire (VPAQscreen) for Brazilian Portuguese

The Vulvar Pain Assessment Questionnaire (VPAQscreen) assesses self-reported vulvar pain and its impact on women's quality of life. This study aimed to translate, adapt, and validate the VPAQscreen for the Brazilian population, and to assess the structural validity, test-retest reliability, and internal consistency of the Brazilian Portuguese version (VPAQ-BRasil) in women with vulvar pain. The study was conducted in two phases: phase 1 covered translation and cross-cultural adaptation (translation, synthesis, back translation, expert review, and pretesting), and phase 2 assessed the measurement properties of the VPAQ-BRasil. Exploratory factor analysis assessed structural validity, Pearson's correlation coefficient (r) evaluated test-retest reliability, and Cronbach's alpha verified internal consistency. One hundred women with vulvar pain (mean age of 38.04 ± 12.9 years), recruited from three hospitals in Recife (Brazil), participated in the study. The five-factor structure had factor loadings > 0.50 in most subscales. Test-retest reliability ranged from moderate to strong across subscales (r = 0.501-0.843). Internal consistency was satisfactory to excellent (Cronbach's α = 0.799-0.928). The VPAQ-BRasil showed satisfactory internal consistency, test-retest reliability, and structural validity, supporting its use for assessing vulvar pain characteristics and their impacts on physical, emotional, and interpersonal aspects of the lives of Brazilian women.