The scale became more and more used at the international level
The German original MRS scale was first translated and culturally adapted into English, showing cross-cultural equivalence [ 7 ]
Partners of ZEG Berlin (www.zeg-berlin.de) did many of the translations; others were done by individual research groups such as the two Chinese versions. Several new linguistic and cultural adaptations were recently performed by the MAPI Research Institute (www.mapi-research-inst.com), particularly for East-European languages, supported by Solvay Pharmaceuticals. The translations were performed in congruence with international methodological recommendations for linguistic & cultural adaptation of HRQoL measures [ 11 , 12 ] using the English version as source language to ensure cross-cultural equivalence among countries. Six steps of the translation process were recommended: Forward translations (at least two independent translators), a consensus meeting with the coordinator of the translation, a check by a bilingual expert in the application field of the scale to evaluate the scientific correctness of the wording, a backward translation, a consensus meeting among the translators with the coordinator, and finally a pretest with a few persons to test the understandability of the overall scale and of each item (also called cognitive debriefing).For completeness, all MRS versions we are aware of are attached as additional files in PDF-format (Adobe Acrobat). The majority of language versions followed the same, i.e. internationally recommended, complex methodology of language adaptation. For this reason, we can assume that different language versions have linguistic and cultural equivalence, although different groups did the translation work. We will further try to facilitate this process in other languages if requested.
If the scale should be applied in other countries with the “same” language, e.g. speaking also Spanish, Portuguese or English language, at least a critical review of the translation of all items or even the introduction has to be made by a group experienced in cultural adaptation of health related Quality-of-Life scales. In some cases, a new translation could be necessary. This is a complex process that needs expert experience, which can be offered from the author of this Website (Prof. Heinemann, ZEG Berlin).
Altogether, 25 language versions of the MRS are currently in use. For access to the respective language version of interest, please see additional files linked here:
It should be stressed that persons who are interested in applying the MRS scale in their research can download the appropriate language version and use it without any formal permission. However, it would be important for further developing the scale to keep an overview who is using the scale and for what reason.Therefore, an information should be sent to the developers of this scale (see Contact). In return, all information on the scale that became known in between will be made available.
[ 7 ]. Anonymous. Trust introduces new translation criteria. Medical Outcomes Trust Bulletin 1997;5:2-4
[ 11 ]. Schneider HPG, Heinemann LAJ, Rosemeier HP, Potthoff P, Behre HM. The Menopause Rating Scale (MRS): Comparison with Kupperman Index and Quality of Life Scale SF-36. Climacteric 2000;3:50-58
[ 12 ]. Schneider HPG, Rosemeier HP, Schnitker J, Gerbsch S, Turck R. Application and factor analysis of the menopause rating scale [MRS] in a post-marketing surveillance study of Climen®. Maturitas 2000;37:113-124
