A validated symptoms questionnaire (Chinese GERDQ) for the diagnosis of gastro-oesophageal reflux disease in the Chinese population

Background and aims: To develop a validated gastro-oesophageal disease (GERD) symptom questionnaire for the Chinese population. Methods: One hundred Chinese patients with GERD and 101 healthy Chinese controls were presented with a 20-item GERD questionnaire in the Chinese language (Chinese GERDQ). Quality of life in GERD patients was assessed by SF-36. A standard dose of proton pump inhibitors for 4 weeks was prescribed to 35 patients with newly diagnosed GERD. The Chinese GERDQ was performed before, 4 weeks and 8 weeks after treatment. Concept, content, construct, discriminant validity and reliability of the questionnaire were assessed. Results: Seven items were selected by logistic regression to account for most of the differences between controls and GERD patients with a good reproducibility and internal consistency. A cut-off score of equal or greater than 12 was determined to discriminate between controls and GERD patients with a sensitivity of 82% and a specificity of 84%. The Chinese GERDQ correlated negatively with five domains of the SF-36 and discriminated between GERD patients who reported symptomatic improvement during proton pump inhibitor treatment and symptoms deterioration upon withdrawal of proton pump inhibitor treatment. Conclusions: The Chinese GERDQ could be used in epidemiological studies to assess the frequency and severity of GERD in patient populations and in interventional studies of GERD.