Cross-cultural adaptation and validation of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Quality of Life questionnaire into Arabic.

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a chronic autoimmune disease which affects all aspects of quality of life (QoL) of the patients. Comprehensive patient assessment should include QoL measures in addition to the objective clinical measures of the disease. There is no specific Arabic instrument for assessment of QoL of SLE patients. The objective of this study was to translate and cross culturally adapt the SLEQOL questionnaire into Arabic and test its reliability and validity. The SLEQOL questionnaire was translated into Arabic based on the Guidelines for Translation and Cross-cultural Adaptation into other languages. Reliability was assessed by interviewing patients three times: two interviews on the same day by different interviewers and the third interview 14 days later by one of the first interviewers. Validity was assessed by correlating SLEQOL scores of 91 patients with 36-item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) scores and clinical parameters of the patients. We found that the Arabic version of SLEQOL has a Cronbach's alpha of 0.936, interobserver and intraobserver correlation coefficients of 0.809 and 0.886 respectively. Strong correlations were also found between SLEQOL scores and SF-36 Physical and Mental Component summaries. In conclusion, the Arabic version of SLEQOL is a reliable and valid instrument for measuring QoL of Egyptian SLE patients.

Survey of computed tomography technique and radiation dose in Sudanese hospitals.

The purpose of this study was to survey technique and radiation absorbed dose in CT examinations of adult in Sudan and to compare the results with the reference dose levels. Questionnaire forms were completed in nine hospitals and a sample of 445 CT examinations in patients. Information on patient, procedure, scanner, and technique for common CT examinations were collected. For each facility, the radiation absorbed dose was measured on CT dose phantom measuring 16 cm (head) and 32 cm (body) in diameter and was used to calculate the normalized CT air kerma index. Volume CT air kerma index (CVOL), CT air kerma-length product (PKL,CT) values were calculated using the measured normalized CT air kerma index and questionnaire information. The effective dose, E estimates was determined by using PKL,CT measurements and appropriate normalized coefficients. Assuming the sample to offer a fair representative picture of CT practice patterns in Sudan, the mean CVOL and PKL,CT values were comparable or below the reference doses: 65 mGy and 758 mGy cm, respectively at head CT; 11.5 mGy and 327 mGy cm, respectively at chest CT; 11.6 mGy and 437 mGy cm, respectively at abdominal CT; and 11.0 mGy and 264 mGy cm, respectively at pelvis CT. Estimated effective doses were 1.6, 4.6, 6.6 and 4.0 mSv, respectively. The study offered a first national dose survey and provided a mean for quality control and optimization of CT practice within the country.