Abstract:
Background: Oral diseases can have a negative impact on both children and their
families. The Family Impact Scale (FIS) is a commonly used measure to evaluate the
parent/caregiver's perception of the impact of children's oral health on the family. A
short-form
version (the FIS-8)
has been developed and translated into Arabic.
Aim: To evaluate the validity and reliability of the FIS-8.
Design: Cross-sectional
study of a random sample of two hundred and forty-six
12 years-old
Libyan schoolchildren and their parents/caregivers (in 2019). Parents/
caregivers completed questionnaires while their children underwent clinical examinations
for dental caries experience and gingival status. Internal consistency of the
FIS-8
was assessed. For discriminant validity, overall score and subscale scores of
FIS-8
were compared across categorised oral disease levels. Construct validity was
tested by assessing the associations of overall score and subscale scores with global
ratings of overall well-being.
Test-retest
reliability was evaluated using a random
sample of 10% of participants.
Results: The overall summary scale and subscales of FIS-8
succeeded in discriminating
among ordinal categories of child dental caries experience, and a clear gradient
was observed in mean FIS-8
scores across gingival status categories. There were
moderate, positive correlations between the parents' and caregivers’ overall score
and subscale scores and the ratings for overall well-being
(r = 0.39). The overall
scale showed acceptable internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = 0.79) and excellent
test-retest
reliability (ICC = 0.93).
Conclusions: The Arabic version of the FIS-8
demonstrated acceptable properties
and is likely to be suitable for wider us
