Session Information
Date: Tuesday, September 24, 2019
Session Title: Rating Scales
Session Time: 1:45pm-3:15pm
Location: Les Muses Terrace, Level 3
Objective: To summarize the status of the MDS-sponsored translation programs for non-English versions of the MDS-UPDRS and UDysRS.
Background: The MDS-UPDRS and UDysRS 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 volunteer to develop a translation and back-translation of the MDS-UPDRS and UDysRS. A Cognitive Pre-Testing phase allows refinement of the scale to ensure that questions and response options 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 and 250 for UDysRS). Pre-specified criteria based on Comparative Fit Index must be met in order to establish a given version as an Official MDS-approved Translation.
Results: As of Feb 28, 2019, 21 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 six programs in full field testing (Arabic, Czech, Danish, Hindi, Romanian, and Serbian) and the UDysRS has seven programs in full field testing (Arabic, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Polish, Romanian, and Serbian). Other languages at earlier phases of the program include Norwegian, Swedish and Urdu (MDS-UPDRS) and Chinese (Simplified), Urdu, and Estonian (UDysRS).
Conclusion: The MDS-sponsored Translation Program for the MDS-UPDRS and UDysRS 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.
To cite this abstract in AMA style:
S. Luo, N. Lapelle, P. Martin, C. Goetz, G. Stebbins. MDS Translation Program for MDS-UPDRS and UDysRS [abstract]. Mov Disord. 2019; 34 (suppl 2). https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/mds-translation-program-for-mds-updrs-and-udysrs/. Accessed May 17, 2025.« Back to 2019 International Congress
MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/mds-translation-program-for-mds-updrs-and-udysrs/