Development and validation of the Chinese Overactive Bladder Symptom Score for assessing overactive bladder syndrome in a RESORT study

Abstract

Background/purpose: This study aimed to develop and validate the Chinese Overactive Bladder Symptom Score (OABSS) for assessing overactive bladder (OAB) symptoms and compare it with a 3-day bladder diary.

Methods: The Chinese OABSS was developed by linguistic validation of the original version. Its reliability and validity and correlations with a 3-day bladder diary were tested on patients with OAB in a multicenter study conducted in Taiwan (the RESORT study).

Results: A total of 60 patients with OAB, either incontinent (OAB wet, n=31) or continent (OAB dry, n=29), were enrolled consecutively in this study. The test-retest reliability of the Chinese OABSS was moderate to good, with weighted kappa coefficients of 0.515-0.721 for each symptom score and 0.610 for the total symptom score. Each symptom score correlated positively with the total OABSS (Spearman's rho 0.365-0.793) and was internally consistent (Cronbach's alpha 0.674). The distribution of the OABSS showed a clear separation between OAB wet (average 11.4, range 7-15) and OAB dry (average 7.97, range 4-10) subgroups (Wilcoxon exact test, p<0.05). In addition, the OABSS items correlated positively with the corresponding bladder diary variables (Spearman's rho 0.504-0.879) and the degrees of agreement improved with study visits except for nighttime frequency. The Chinese OABSS tended to underestimate the frequency of nighttime voiding.

Conclusion: The Chinese OABSS has been developed and validated as a reliable instrument for assessing OAB symptoms. OABSS can be an alternative to, but not a replacement for, a 3-day bladder diary for assessing patients.