Cross-Cultural Adaptation and Validation of the Pediatric Eye Questionnaire in Chinese Children with Uveitis: A Rasch Analysis.

Background: Pediatric uveitis often results in severe visual impairment, significantly impairing the quality of life for affected children and their families. The Pediatric Eye Questionnaire (PedEyeQ) was originally developed and validated in English to assess vision-related quality of life (VR-QOL) in children. However, the psychometric properties of its Chinese adaptation (PedEyeQ-CN) remain unexplored in pediatric uveitis patients. To fill this gap, we conducted the first study to translate the PedEyeQ into Chinese and evaluate its psychometric properties using Rasch analysis in children with uveitis. Methods: The PedEyeQ (12-17 years) was translated from English into Chinese, building upon the previously adapted PedEyeQ-CN (5-11 years). Patients with pediatric uveitis were recruited to complete the Child section, while their parents completed the Proxy and Parent sections. Rasch analysis was conducted to assess the psychometric properties of both age-specific versions (5-11 and 12-17 years), including unidimensionality, measurement precision, fit statistics, differential item functioning (DIF), category threshold ordering, and targeting. Results: The study included 154 children aged 5-11 years and 193 children aged 12-17 years, each accompanied by a parent. Unidimensionality was confirmed for every domain in both age-specific versions of the PedEyeQ-CN. Additionally, Rasch analysis showed evidence of ordered category thresholds, adequate measurement precision, and satisfactory person-item targeting for all questionnaires. Both the Child and Proxy PedEyeQ-CN (12-17 years) each had one item with an outfit value greater than 1.5. A few items displayed minimal differential item functioning (DIF) by gender in each section of the PedEyeQ-CN. Conclusion: The PedEyeQ-CN demonstrates acceptable psychometric properties and is a valid tool for assessing VR-QOL in Chinese pediatric patients with uveitis and their families. This instrument is available for use in clinical and research settings, providing a standardized method to quantify the impact of uveitis and its treatments on daily life, and facilitating patient-centered care and outcome evaluation.