Development and validation of Yin-Deficiency Questionnaire

Am J Chin Med. 2007;35(1):11-20. doi: 10.1142/S0192415X07004576.

Abstract

This study describes development and validation of a questionnaire as an adjunct to Traditional Chinese Medicine diagnosis of Yin-Deficiency Syndrome (Yin-DS). The Yin-Deficiency Questionnaire 1 (Yin-DQ1) consists of 10 items. Seventy-nine healthy volunteers and 44 patients diagnosed with Yin-DS were enrolled for the evaluation of discriminant validity and factorial validity. Another group of 83 healthy volunteers participated for test-retest reliability test. Internal consistency was high in both groups (Cronbach's alpha = 0.8615). Test-retest reliability (Spearman's rank correlation coefficient) ranged from 0.54 to 0.79 (p < 0.01). Factor analysis demonstrated that a two factor solution best explained the variance in responses (51.62%). The scores of all items in patients diagnosed with Yin-DS were significantly higher compared with those of healthy volunteers. The data show the internal consistency, test-retest reliability and strong discriminative properties of the Yin-DQ1. Further research determining the optimal cut-off score for Yin-DS and testing its usage as an outcome measure in a clinical trial is needed.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Validation Study

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Factor Analysis, Statistical
  • Female
  • Health Status Indicators
  • Health Surveys
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Medicine, Chinese Traditional*
  • Middle Aged
  • Reproducibility of Results
  • Surveys and Questionnaires*
  • Yin Deficiency / diagnosis*
  • Yin Deficiency / physiopathology