Development and Validation of the Japanese Versions of the Eye and HRQOL Modules of FACE-Q Aesthetics for Patients Who Undergo Blepharoptosis Surgery.

OBJECTIVES: The face is an important factor for an individual to create an impression and engage in social activities such as seeing, talking, laughing, and eating. Treatment for people with blepharoptosis is covered under public health insurance in Japan. Many surgeons report that the operation improves patients' health-related quality of life (HRQOL); however, no patient-reported outcome (PRO) measures regarding the face and eyelids are available in Japanese. Therefore, this study developed the Japanese versions of the Eye and HRQOL Modules of FACE-Q Aesthetics and analyzed their validity and reliability.

METHODS: We translated FACE-Q Aesthetics following the procedure established by the copyright department of Q-Portfolio after obtaining permission to develop the Japanese version. Subsequently, we validated the translated modules by surveying 50 patients with blepharoptosis. Data were collected in the following three waves: preoperatively, 6 months postoperatively, and 2 weeks after the second phase. Data were analyzed to identify floor and ceiling effects, internal consistency, test-retest reliability, and concurrent validity.

RESULTS: No problematic floor or ceiling effects were identified. The non-response rate for all items was ≤10%. Cronbach's alpha coefficients were >0.7 for all scales. Moreover, the intraclass correlation coefficient between the first and second postoperative responses was also >0.7 for all scales. Several correlations were observed among the other PRO measures, which are available in Japanese.

CONCLUSIONS: This study developed and validated the Japanese versions of the Eye and HRQOL Modules of FACE-Q Aesthetics. These versions were sufficiently valid, reliable, and in line with Japanese culture.