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ABSTRACT

Dysphagia Handicap Index (DHI) is a 25-item questionnaire that assesses the quality of life among individuals with dysphagia. The aim of the study was to translate and validate the Hindi version of DHI (DHI-H). 72 healthy individuals and 72 individuals with dysphagia filled out the DHI-H. Internal consistency and test-retest reproducibility were used for reliability testing. To establish validity, the DHI-H scores of the patients with dysphagia and healthy controls were compared. The overall Cronbach’s alpha and test-retest reliability of the tool was good. The correlation that existed between the DHI-H subscales and the self-perceived severity of dysphagia was found to be high. The comparison of the DHI-H scores of the healthy group and dysphagia groups revealed a significant difference. This signifies the importance of assessing and addressing the QOL in individuals with dysphagia. Thus, DHI-H is a valid and reliable tool that measures QOL in individuals with dysphagia and it must be in-cooperated in the routine clinical practice of dysphagia clinics.

Keywords: DHI, dysphagia, handicap, quality of life, swallowing, DHI-H, India