Validation of the Finnish version of the food allergy quality of life questionnaire–parent form (F‐FAQLQ‐PF)

• Published in: Acta Paediatrica Vol. 113; no. 1; pp. 91 - 97
• Main Authors: Kivistö, J. E., Blok, B. Flokstra, Protudjer, J. L. P., Ojaniemi, I., Karjalainen, J., Huhtala, H., Dunn Galvin, A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Norway Wiley Subscription Services, Inc 01.01.2024
• Subjects: Adolescent; Age; Child; Children; Cronbach's alpha; Finland; Food allergies; food allergy; food allergy quality of life questionnaire–parent form; Food Hypersensitivity - diagnosis; Food Hypersensitivity - epidemiology; Food quality; health‐related quality of life; Humans; Medicin och hälsovetenskap; Parents; Quality of Life; Questionnaires; Reproducibility of Results; Surveys and Questionnaires; validation; Validation studies; Finland; health-related quality of life; food allergy; validation; food allergy quality of life questionnaire-parent form
• ISSN: 0803-5253; 1651-2227; 1651-2227
• DOI: 10.1111/apa.16937

Aim Specific questionnaires about food allergy and health‐related quality of life (HRQoL) have been developed and validated in several languages, but not Finnish. We aimed to validate the Finnish Food Allergy Quality of Life Questionnaire‐Parent Form (FAQLQ‐PF) for children under age 13 years. Methods The original FAQLQ‐PF and Food Allergy Independent Measure (FAIM) were translated into Finnish per World Health Organisation guidelines and tested by 72 parents of children under age 13 years with suspected severe peanut or tree nut allergy who were recruited at Allergy Centre in Tampere University Hospital in Tampere, Finland. We calculated the construct validity of the questionnaire by calculating the coefficients between the two measures and used Cronbach's alpha to establish the internal consistency. Results The FAQLQ‐PF showed strong correlations with domain structure and internal consistency, based on Spearman's correlations (rho) for the HRQoL questions, FAIM questions and FAIM mean values. The total questionnaire score correlated significantly with the mean FAIM (rho = 0.95, p < 0.001) and individual FAIM questions. The FAQLQ‐PF and domains had good or excellent internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha >0.70). Conclusion The Finnish FAQLQ‐PF demonstrated good construct validity and excellent internal consistency for measuring food allergy HRQoL in children under age 13 years.