INTRODUCTION : To assess, from a patient's point of view, the issues related to the burden resulting from the use of medicines, the Living with Medicines Questionnaire version 3 has been developed in English.
OBJECTIVE : To translate and culturally adapt the LMQ version 3 into three regional languages in India.
METHODOLOGY : Permission to translate the LMQ-3 was obtained from the original developers, and a translation and adaptation protocol based on the International Society of Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research guidelines has been developed using patient-reported outcome measures. To produce the first reconciled version, translated back into English, two forward translations from English into the Indian regional language (Tamil, Telugu, and Hindi) have been developed and compared.
RESULTS : Rewording of certain items within this instrument has addressed the issues found and those relating to Cultural and Conceptual equivalence with respect to some terms. The translation process and cognitive debriefing exercise generated comments regarding the original tool’s construct and its Tamil, Telugu and Hindi equivalents, which were communicated to the developers of the LMQ for their consideration while conducting further comparative studies.
CONCLUSION : To be able to use it in research and clinical practice in Tamil, Telugu and Hindi-speaking people in India, a culturally appropriate translation of the LMQ version 3 has been developed. It is recommended and envisaged that this developed version of these languages will continue to be validated.