Reliability and validity of the M arch of dimes preconception/prenatal family health history questionnaire: The Persian version

In recent years, there has been a remarkable gap between rapid advancements in genetic technology and public health practice. Looking at the familial health history may bridge this gap for easier and cheaper diagnosis and prevention of congenital anomalies. The aim of this study was to validate and culturally adapt the M arch of D imes Preconception/Prenatal Family Health History Questionnaire for the Iranian population. After obtaining written permission from M arch of D imes, the translation–back translation of the original questionnaire was performed. The content validity was assessed by a team of 12 experts. Based on a sample of 50 general practitioners and 100 subjects referred to health centers from S eptember to N ovember 2014 in T abriz, I ran, test‐retest reliability and inter‐rater reliability were evaluated by Kappa and Intra‐class Correlation Coefficient ( ICC ). Content validity of the Persian version of the questionnaire was confirmed according to the modified kappa value above 0.76 for all the items included in this tool. Inter‐rater reliability assessment yielded a kappa value between 0.62 and 0.92 for variables with dichotomous measurement scales and ICC ranged from 0.6 to 0.9 for variables with numeric scales. Test–retest re‐administration produced kappa ranging from 0.62 to 0.92 for variables with dichotomous measurement scales and ICC from 0.6 to 0.9 for variables with numeric scales. The Persian version of the M arch of D imes preconception/prenatal family health history questionnaire showed acceptable reliability and validity and may be used as a simple tool for the detection of risk factors of birth defects in Iranian population.