Validity and Internal Consistency of the Persian Version of the Copenhagen Hip and Groin Outcome Score for Evaluation of Hip and Groin Pain among Iranian Athletes

Abstract

Background: Copenhagen Hip and Groin Outcome Score (HAGOS) was previously translated to Persian. In this study, the construct validity, discriminative validity, and internal consistency of HAGOS among Iranian athletes were evaluated.

Methods: This study was cross-sectional conducted between 2014 and 2015 at the physiotherapy clinics and sport clubs of Tehran. One hundred athletes with hip and groin pain and 50 healthy athletes were included. Participants completed the Persian version of HAGOS, and the Visual Analog Scale (VAS) was used to assess the severity of their hip and groin pain. The construct validity, discriminative validity, and internal consistency of the HAGOS were assessed.

Results: In total, 100 athletes with hip and groin pain (mean age= 25.5 yr, SD=3.3) and 50 healthy athletes (mean age= 24.7 yr, SD= 3.5) participated in the study. The mean total HAGOS score and all its subscale scores were significantly lower in athletes with pain compared to healthy athletes (p<0.001), indicating the discriminative validity of the Persian version of HAGOS. HAGOS’ total score had a strong correlation with VAS score (coefficient -0.75, p<0.001), and all its subscales had moderate negative correlations with the VAS score (p<0.001), confirming the construct validity. The total HAGOS score had a Cronbach’s alpha of 0.87, indicating acceptable internal consistency.

Conclusion: The present study demonstrated the internal consistency, discriminative validity, and construct validity of the Persian version of HAGOS for assessing hip and groin pain and function among Iranian athletes. This tool can be considered as a useful tool for both clinical practice and research involving Iranian athletes with hip and groin pain.