Arabic Version of Skindex-16: Translation and Cultural Adaptation, with Assessment of Reliability and Validity

In 2007, AlGhamdi and AlShammari translated and culturally adapted the Skindex-16, a dermatologic quality-of-life measure, into Arabic and tested its reliability and validity among 678 participants, including 338 dermatologic patients and 340 healthy individuals. The translation process involved a second translation and back-translation for some items. The Arabic Skindex-16 demonstrated high internal reliability, with Cronbach's alpha values ranging from 0.81 to 0.92 across different scales. The instrument also showed construct and content validity, with dermatologic patients reporting higher scores than healthy individuals, indicating a poorer quality of life. The study concluded that the Arabic version of Skindex-16 is a reliable and valid tool for assessing the impact of skin diseases on quality of life in Saudi patients, although it may require additional questions to address issues like post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation and skin dryness.