Objective: To summarize the status of the ongoing MDS-sponsored translation programs for non-English versions of the MDS-UPDRS, UDysRS, and MDS-NMS.

Background: The MDS-UPDRS, UDysRS, and MDS-NMS were developed in English, but international multicenter clinical trials of new treatments for Parkinson’s disease and dyskinesia require recruitment of non-English study subjects and raters. Official, clinimetrically validated translations of these scales assure uniform application across languages and cultures.

Method: Under the direction of an administrative team, non-English language teams develop a translation and back-translation of the MDS-UPDRS, UDysRS, and MDS-NMS. A Cognitive Pre-Testing phase allows refinement of the scale to ensure that questions and response options are culturally harmonized and are clear and comfortable for patients and raters.  The resultant version is field tested across a large native-language speaking patient population (350 for MDS-UPDRS, 250 for UDysRS, and 300 for MDS-NMS).  Pre-specified criteria based on Comparative Fit Index must be met to establish a given version as an Official MDS-approved Translation.

Results: As of Feb 29, 2020, 30 non-English language teams are participating in the translation programs.  Nineteen non-English Official Translations of the MDS-UPDRS have been approved:  Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Dutch, Estonian, French, German, Greek, Hebrew, Hungarian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Slovak, Spanish, Thai, and Turkish. For the UDysRS, 14 Official Translations have been approved: Chinese (Traditional), French, German, Greek, Hebrew, Hungarian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, Slovak, Spanish, and Turkish. The MDS-UPDRS has seven programs in full field-testing (Arabic, Czech, Danish, Hindi, Romanian, Serbian, and Swedish) and the UDysRS has eight programs in full field-testing (Arabic, Danish, Dutch, Estonian, Finnish, Polish, Romanian, and Serbian). Other languages at earlier phases include Kazakh, Norwegian, and Urdu (MDS-UPDRS) and Chinese (Simplified), Kazakh, and Urdu (UDysRS). The translation program of MDS-NMS started in mid-2020.

Conclusion: The MDS-sponsored Translation Programs for the MDS-UPDRS, UDysRS, and MDS-NMS has developed a systematic protocol for validation of non-English versions to aid clinicians in practice as well as foster multicultural utilization of these scales for studies of Parkinson’s disease and dyskinesia.

« Back to MDS Virtual Congress 2020

MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/mds-translation-program-for-mds-updrs-udysrs-and-mds-nms/