Tradução e adaptação cultural da versão de faces do instrumento "Modified child dental anxiety scale”

Abstract

Several tools have been used to assess dental anxiety in pediatric patients, and the Modified Child Dental Anxiety Scale (MCDAS) questionnaire is a valid and reliable option for use in this population. The MCDAS face version (MCDASf) has been adapted to make it easier to apply to younger children, but there is not a version yet for use in Brazil. Thus, this study aimed to translate and perform the cultural adaptation of MCDASf to Brazilian Portuguese language. This instrument consists of eight specific questions about dental treatment, with five-point Likert scale response options, with a total score ranging from eight (little or no anxiety) to forty points (extreme dental anxiety). To the numerical scale was added a face scale, with five face illustrations, showing affective characteristics, ranging from “extremely negative” to “extremely positive”. The translation process took place in three stages: initial translation from English to Portuguese, reverse translation and peer review. Subsequently, the instrument was culturally adapted by interviewing sixteen children. In this phase, two questions (seven and eight) presented more than 15% of misunderstanding. The necessary adaptations were made and an updated version was applied to a new sample of children. At this stage, all questions were appropriate. Therefore, it was concluded that the Portuguese version of MCDASf was easily understood by Brazilian children.