German-language questionnaires for the standardized assessment of fecal incontinence and quality of life

Background and objective: The severity of fecal incontinence is A usually assessed in grades based on medical history. However, this grading does not consider stool frequency and thus the impairment suffered by the patients. A German translation of the incontinence scores of the Cleveland Clinic (CCS) for a standardized measurement disability has been recommended but not yet tested. Similarly, the impact of fecal incontinence on quality of life needs to be assessed with a specific assessment. The Fecal Incontinence Quality of Life Scale (FIQoL) is available for this, but not yet a German-language version. Patients and Methods: For the German version of the CCS and the FIQoL we first evaluated linguistic aspects via translation and back-translation. We then compared the response to the translated questionnaires of a sample of 158 German patients who had fecal incontinence with those reported in English-language publications. Results: The German versions were judged to be successful. The comparison with six published studies showed similar scores in the CCS and in all subscales of the FIQoL. Conclusion: Satisfactory German-language questionnaires are now available to assess the severity of fecal incontinence and specific aspects of the quality of life.