*Result*: Translation, Adaptation, and Validation of the Young Spine Questionnaire for the Italian Children.
Title:
Translation, Adaptation, and Validation of the Young Spine Questionnaire for the Italian Children.
Authors:
Policastro F; Department of Medicine and Health Science, University of Trieste, 34100 Trieste, Italy (Dr Policastro and Goos); Institute for Maternal and Child Health IRCCS Burlo Garofolo, 34137 Trieste, Italy (Casalaz and Sartori); Departmental Faculty of Medicine and Surgery, Saint Camillus International University of Rome and Medical Sciences - Unicamillus, 00131 Rome, Italy (Frontani)., Goos G, Casalaz R, Sartori R, Frontani F
Source:
Pediatric physical therapy : the official publication of the Section on Pediatrics of the American Physical Therapy Association [Pediatr Phys Ther] 2026 Jan 01; Vol. 38 (1), pp. 108-112. Date of Electronic Publication: 2025 Dec 30.
Publication Type:
Journal Article; Validation Study
Language:
English
Journal Info:
Publisher: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins Country of Publication: United States NLM ID: 8912748 Publication Model: Print-Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1538-005X (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 08985669 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Pediatr Phys Ther Subsets: MEDLINE
Imprint Name(s):
Publication: <2005->: Hagerstown, MD : Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
Original Publication: [Baltimore, MD] : Williams & Wilkins, [c1989-
Original Publication: [Baltimore, MD] : Williams & Wilkins, [c1989-
MeSH Terms:
Surveys and Questionnaires*/standards , Pain Measurement*/methods , Pain Measurement*/standards , Neck Pain*/diagnosis , Neck Pain*/ethnology , Back Pain*/diagnosis , Back Pain*/ethnology , Psychometrics*/methods , Psychometrics*/standards, Italy/ethnology ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Culturally Competent Care ; Translations ; Humans ; Male ; Female ; Child ; Reproducibility of Results ; Statistics, Nonparametric ; European People
References:
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Jeffries LJ, Milanese SF, Grimmer-Somers KA. Epidemiology of adolescent spinal pain: a systematic overview of the research literature. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2007;32(23):2630-2637. doi:10.1097/BRS.0b013e318158d70b. (PMID: 10.1097/BRS.0b013e318158d70b)
Brattberg G. Do pain problems in young school children persist into early adulthood? A 13-year follow-up. Eur J Pain. 2004;8(3):187-199. doi:10.1016/j.ejpain.2003.08.001. (PMID: 10.1016/j.ejpain.2003.08.001)
Hestbaek L, Leboeuf-Yde C, Kyvik KO, Manniche C. The course of low back pain from adolescence to adulthood: eight-year follow-up of 9600 twins. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2006;31(4):468-472. doi:10.1097/01.brs.0000199958.04073.d9. (PMID: 10.1097/01.brs.0000199958.04073.d9)
Szita J, Boja S, Szilagyi A, Somhegyi A, Varga PP, Lazary A. Risk factors of non- specific spinal pain in childhood. Eur Spine J. 2018;27(5):1119-1126. doi:10.1007/s00586-018-5516-1. (PMID: 10.1007/s00586-018-5516-1)
Olsen TL, Anderson RL, Dearwater SR, Kriska AM, Cauley JA, Aaron DJ, LaPorte RE. The epidemiology of low back pain in an adolescent population. Am J Public Health. 1992;82(4):606-608. doi:10.2105/ajph.82.4.606. (PMID: 10.2105/ajph.82.4.606)
Calvo-Muñoz I, Gómez-Conesa A, Sánchez-Meca J. Prevalence of low back pain in children and adolescents: a meta-analysis. BMC Pediatr. 2013;13:14. doi: 10.1186/1471-2431-13-14. (PMID: 10.1186/1471-2431-13-14)
Poitras VJ, Gray CE, Borghese MM, Carson V, Chaput JP, Janssen I, Katzmarzyk PT, Pate RR, Connor Gorber S, Kho ME, Sampson M, Tremblay MS. Systematic review of the relationships between objectively measured physical activity and health indicators in school-aged children and youth. Appl Physiol Nutr Metab. 2016;41(6 Suppl 3):S197–239. doi:10.1139/apnm-2015-0663. (PMID: 10.1139/apnm-2015-0663)
Wedderkopp N, Kjaer P, Hestbaek L, Korsholm L, Leboeuf-Yde C. High-level physical activity in childhood seems to protect against low back pain in early adolescence. Spine J. 2009;9(2):134-141. doi:10.1016/j.spinee.2008.02.003. (PMID: 10.1016/j.spinee.2008.02.003)
Kędra A, Plandowska M, Kędra P, Czaprowski D. Physical activity and low back pain in children and adolescents: a systematic review. Eur Spine J. 2021;30(4):946-956. doi:10.1007/s00586-020-06575-5. (PMID: 10.1007/s00586-020-06575-5)
Pellisé F, Balagué F, Rajmil L, Cedraschi C, Aguirre M, Fontecha CG, Pasarín M, Ferrer M. Prevalence of low back pain and its effect on health-related quality of life in adolescents. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2009;163(1):65-71. doi:10.1001/archpediatrics.2008.512. (PMID: 10.1001/archpediatrics.2008.512)
Roth-Isigkeit A, Thyen U, Stöven H, Schwarzenberger J, Schmucker P. Pain among children and adolescents: restrictions in daily living and triggering factors. Pediatrics. 2005;115(2):e152–62. doi:10.1542/peds.2004-0682. (PMID: 10.1542/peds.2004-0682)
Lauridsen HH, Meldgaard E, Hestbæk L, Hansen GK. Development of the young disability questionnaire (spine) for children with spinal pain: field testing in Danish school children. BMJ Open. 2023;13:e064382.
Lauridsen HH, Hestbaek L. Development of the young spine questionnaire. BMC Musculoskelet Disord. 2013;14:185. doi:10.1186/1471-2474-14-185. (PMID: 10.1186/1471-2474-14-185)
Nyirö L, Potthoff T, Siegenthaler MH, Riner F, Schweinhardt P, Wirth B. Translation and validation of the German version of the young spine questionnaire. BMC Pediatr. 2021;21(1):1-12. doi:10.1186/s12887-021-02804-y. (PMID: 10.1186/s12887-021-02804-y)
Teixeira J, Oliveira R, Gomes-Fonseca J, Ferreira L, Lauridsen H, Raimundo A. Portuguese translation, cross-cultural adaptation and reliability of young spine questionnaire. ARP Rheumatol. 2022;1:129-136.
Alves MEDM, Alves JMSRO, Moreira CAR, Ferreira LFBM, Soares CMDS, Flores PMT, Miradouro JCS. Cross-cultural validation of a questionnaire to assess spinal pain in children. Coluna/Columna. 2022;21:e253285.
Beaton DE, Bombardier C, Guillemin F, Ferraz MB. Guidelines for the process of cross-cultural adaptation of self-report measures. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2000;25(24):3186-3191.18. doi:10.1097/00007632-200012150-00014. (PMID: 10.1097/00007632-200012150-00014)
Shoukri MM, Asyali MH, Donner A. Sample size requirements for the design of reliability study: review and new results. Stat Methods Med Res. 2004;13(4):251-271. doi:10.1191/0962280204sm365ra. (PMID: 10.1191/0962280204sm365ra)
White M. Sample size in quantitative instrument validation studies: a systematic review of articles published in Scopus, 2021. Heliyon. 2022; 8(12): doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e12223. (PMID: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e12223)
Ravens-Sieberer U, Erhart M, Rajmil L, Herdman M, Auquier P, Bruil J, Power M, Duer W, Abel T, Czemy L, Mazur J, Czimbalmos A, Tountas Y, Hagquist C, Kilroe J; the European KIDSCREEN Group. Reliability, construct and criterion validity of the KIDSCREEN-10 score: a short measure for children and adolescents’ well-being and health-related quality of life. Qual Life Res. 2010;19(10):1487-1500. doi:10.1007/s11136-010-9706-5. (PMID: 10.1007/s11136-010-9706-5)
Terwee CB, Sdm B, de Boer MR, van der Windt DAWM, Knol DL, Dekker J, Bouter LM, de Vet HCW. Quality criteria were proposed for measurement properties of health status questionnaires. J Clin Epidemiol. 2007;60:34-42. doi:10.1016/j.jclinepi.2006.03.012. (PMID: 10.1016/j.jclinepi.2006.03.012)
Polit DF. Getting serious about test–retest reliability: a critique of retest research and some recommendations. Qual Life Res. 2014;23:1713-1720. doi:10.1007/s11136-014-0632-9. (PMID: 10.1007/s11136-014-0632-9)
Andresen EM. Criteria for assessing the tools of disability outcomes research. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 2000;81:S15–S20.
R Core Team. R: a language and environment for statistical computing. 2021. R Foundation for Statistical Computing, Vienna, Austria. Accessed January 31, 2025. https://www.R-project.org/.26 .
Landis JR, Koch GG. The measurement of observer agreement for categorical data. Biometrics. 1977;159-174. doi:10.2307/2529310. (PMID: 10.2307/2529310)
Burton AK, Clarke RD, McClune TD, Tillotson KM. The natural history of low back pain in adolescents. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 1996;21(20):2323-2328. doi:10.1097/00007632-199610150-00004. (PMID: 10.1097/00007632-199610150-00004)
Jeffries LJ, Milanese SF, Grimmer-Somers KA. Epidemiology of adolescent spinal pain: a systematic overview of the research literature. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2007;32(23):2630-2637. doi:10.1097/BRS.0b013e318158d70b. (PMID: 10.1097/BRS.0b013e318158d70b)
Brattberg G. Do pain problems in young school children persist into early adulthood? A 13-year follow-up. Eur J Pain. 2004;8(3):187-199. doi:10.1016/j.ejpain.2003.08.001. (PMID: 10.1016/j.ejpain.2003.08.001)
Hestbaek L, Leboeuf-Yde C, Kyvik KO, Manniche C. The course of low back pain from adolescence to adulthood: eight-year follow-up of 9600 twins. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2006;31(4):468-472. doi:10.1097/01.brs.0000199958.04073.d9. (PMID: 10.1097/01.brs.0000199958.04073.d9)
Szita J, Boja S, Szilagyi A, Somhegyi A, Varga PP, Lazary A. Risk factors of non- specific spinal pain in childhood. Eur Spine J. 2018;27(5):1119-1126. doi:10.1007/s00586-018-5516-1. (PMID: 10.1007/s00586-018-5516-1)
Olsen TL, Anderson RL, Dearwater SR, Kriska AM, Cauley JA, Aaron DJ, LaPorte RE. The epidemiology of low back pain in an adolescent population. Am J Public Health. 1992;82(4):606-608. doi:10.2105/ajph.82.4.606. (PMID: 10.2105/ajph.82.4.606)
Calvo-Muñoz I, Gómez-Conesa A, Sánchez-Meca J. Prevalence of low back pain in children and adolescents: a meta-analysis. BMC Pediatr. 2013;13:14. doi: 10.1186/1471-2431-13-14. (PMID: 10.1186/1471-2431-13-14)
Poitras VJ, Gray CE, Borghese MM, Carson V, Chaput JP, Janssen I, Katzmarzyk PT, Pate RR, Connor Gorber S, Kho ME, Sampson M, Tremblay MS. Systematic review of the relationships between objectively measured physical activity and health indicators in school-aged children and youth. Appl Physiol Nutr Metab. 2016;41(6 Suppl 3):S197–239. doi:10.1139/apnm-2015-0663. (PMID: 10.1139/apnm-2015-0663)
Wedderkopp N, Kjaer P, Hestbaek L, Korsholm L, Leboeuf-Yde C. High-level physical activity in childhood seems to protect against low back pain in early adolescence. Spine J. 2009;9(2):134-141. doi:10.1016/j.spinee.2008.02.003. (PMID: 10.1016/j.spinee.2008.02.003)
Kędra A, Plandowska M, Kędra P, Czaprowski D. Physical activity and low back pain in children and adolescents: a systematic review. Eur Spine J. 2021;30(4):946-956. doi:10.1007/s00586-020-06575-5. (PMID: 10.1007/s00586-020-06575-5)
Pellisé F, Balagué F, Rajmil L, Cedraschi C, Aguirre M, Fontecha CG, Pasarín M, Ferrer M. Prevalence of low back pain and its effect on health-related quality of life in adolescents. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2009;163(1):65-71. doi:10.1001/archpediatrics.2008.512. (PMID: 10.1001/archpediatrics.2008.512)
Roth-Isigkeit A, Thyen U, Stöven H, Schwarzenberger J, Schmucker P. Pain among children and adolescents: restrictions in daily living and triggering factors. Pediatrics. 2005;115(2):e152–62. doi:10.1542/peds.2004-0682. (PMID: 10.1542/peds.2004-0682)
Lauridsen HH, Meldgaard E, Hestbæk L, Hansen GK. Development of the young disability questionnaire (spine) for children with spinal pain: field testing in Danish school children. BMJ Open. 2023;13:e064382.
Lauridsen HH, Hestbaek L. Development of the young spine questionnaire. BMC Musculoskelet Disord. 2013;14:185. doi:10.1186/1471-2474-14-185. (PMID: 10.1186/1471-2474-14-185)
Nyirö L, Potthoff T, Siegenthaler MH, Riner F, Schweinhardt P, Wirth B. Translation and validation of the German version of the young spine questionnaire. BMC Pediatr. 2021;21(1):1-12. doi:10.1186/s12887-021-02804-y. (PMID: 10.1186/s12887-021-02804-y)
Teixeira J, Oliveira R, Gomes-Fonseca J, Ferreira L, Lauridsen H, Raimundo A. Portuguese translation, cross-cultural adaptation and reliability of young spine questionnaire. ARP Rheumatol. 2022;1:129-136.
Alves MEDM, Alves JMSRO, Moreira CAR, Ferreira LFBM, Soares CMDS, Flores PMT, Miradouro JCS. Cross-cultural validation of a questionnaire to assess spinal pain in children. Coluna/Columna. 2022;21:e253285.
Beaton DE, Bombardier C, Guillemin F, Ferraz MB. Guidelines for the process of cross-cultural adaptation of self-report measures. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2000;25(24):3186-3191.18. doi:10.1097/00007632-200012150-00014. (PMID: 10.1097/00007632-200012150-00014)
Shoukri MM, Asyali MH, Donner A. Sample size requirements for the design of reliability study: review and new results. Stat Methods Med Res. 2004;13(4):251-271. doi:10.1191/0962280204sm365ra. (PMID: 10.1191/0962280204sm365ra)
White M. Sample size in quantitative instrument validation studies: a systematic review of articles published in Scopus, 2021. Heliyon. 2022; 8(12): doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e12223. (PMID: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e12223)
Ravens-Sieberer U, Erhart M, Rajmil L, Herdman M, Auquier P, Bruil J, Power M, Duer W, Abel T, Czemy L, Mazur J, Czimbalmos A, Tountas Y, Hagquist C, Kilroe J; the European KIDSCREEN Group. Reliability, construct and criterion validity of the KIDSCREEN-10 score: a short measure for children and adolescents’ well-being and health-related quality of life. Qual Life Res. 2010;19(10):1487-1500. doi:10.1007/s11136-010-9706-5. (PMID: 10.1007/s11136-010-9706-5)
Terwee CB, Sdm B, de Boer MR, van der Windt DAWM, Knol DL, Dekker J, Bouter LM, de Vet HCW. Quality criteria were proposed for measurement properties of health status questionnaires. J Clin Epidemiol. 2007;60:34-42. doi:10.1016/j.jclinepi.2006.03.012. (PMID: 10.1016/j.jclinepi.2006.03.012)
Polit DF. Getting serious about test–retest reliability: a critique of retest research and some recommendations. Qual Life Res. 2014;23:1713-1720. doi:10.1007/s11136-014-0632-9. (PMID: 10.1007/s11136-014-0632-9)
Andresen EM. Criteria for assessing the tools of disability outcomes research. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 2000;81:S15–S20.
R Core Team. R: a language and environment for statistical computing. 2021. R Foundation for Statistical Computing, Vienna, Austria. Accessed January 31, 2025. https://www.R-project.org/.26 .
Landis JR, Koch GG. The measurement of observer agreement for categorical data. Biometrics. 1977;159-174. doi:10.2307/2529310. (PMID: 10.2307/2529310)
Contributed Indexing:
Keywords: Kidscreen-10; YSQ; adolescents; assessment tool; back pain
Entry Date(s):
Date Created: 20250909 Date Completed: 20260211 Latest Revision: 20260211
Update Code:
20260212
DOI:
10.1097/PEP.0000000000001255
PMID:
40924905
Database:
MEDLINE
*Further Information*
*Purpose: Low back and neck pain are increasing worldwide, even in children. However, Italy lacks validated tools for the assessment of children and adolescents with spine disorders. The Young Spine Questionnaire (YSQ) seems to be an appropriate option. The aim of this study was to translate, adapt, and validate the YSQ to develop an Italian version of it.
Methods: One hundred thirty-three participants were recruited in the area of Trieste, aged between 9 and 12 years old. The YSQ and the KIDSCREEN-10 were assessed with regard to their reliability, test-retest reliability from 3 to 4 days, and construct validity.
Results: The mean age of the sample was 10.25 (±1.5), with a slight prevalence of females (62.7%). The internal consistency was high, with an alpha score ranging from 0.62 to 0.92 and a total score of 0.82. The test-retest showed good reproducibility. The total score of the YSQ showed a Spearman correlation coefficient of 0.87. For the dimensions and the items of the questionnaire, the scores ranged from 0.52 to 0.79. Construct validity showed a strong correlation between the questionnaires, with a score of 0.61.
Conclusions: The YSQ seems to be a valid and reliable questionnaire to assess spinal pain in Italian children. According to the results of the psychometric proprieties, the use of this questionnaire is recommended.
(Copyright © 2025 Academy of Pediatric Physical Therapy of the American Physical Therapy Association.)*
*The authors declare no conflict of interest.*