Introduction: The 12-item Utah Photophobia Symptom Impact Scale
(UPSIS-12) is a questionnaire to assess the impact of photophobia on
daily living during and outside migraine episodes. We aimed to translate
UPSIS-12 and assess its usability in the Turkish cohort by analyzing
internal consistency, reliability, and reproducibility.
Methods: In this multicenter prospective, descriptive study, 120 patients
with migraine were recruited. The patients received the diagnosis of
migraine without aura (MwoA) and migraine with aura (MwA) according
to the International Classification of Headache Disorders 3rd edition.
The scale was translated into Turkish, and the patients were evaluated by
headache experts in two visits four weeks apart from each other.
Results: The questionnaire showed highly correlated test-retest reliability
(r=0.828). Cronbach alpha values of internal consistency revealed good to
excellent results ranging from 0.78–0.82. There was a strong and positive
correlation between self and physician-administered scales at both visits
(r=0.964 and 0.985, respectively). The questionnaire was considered
“well understood” by 95.6% of the patients. The average UPSIS-12
score of each visit was 25.8 and 26.9 (average standard deviation of
10.4). Subjects with MwoA (25.5±10.4) had remarkably lower mean
scores compared to MwoA plus MwA (29.2±8.9) and MwA (32.9±9.4)
(p=0.0167). Patients with high frequency migraine presented with a
higher mean UPSIS-12 score than those with low frequency (31.3±9.5
and 24.7±9.8, respectively). It was noted that the mean UPSIS-12 scores
of those with severe (29.4±9.4) and moderate ictal cutaneous allodynia
(CA) (28.4±10.6) were higher than those without CA (22.0±9.3)(p=0.020).
Conclusion: The Turkish version of the UPSIS-12 questionnaire is a
reliable tool and well-understood by the Turkish population. Patients
with MwA, frequent migraine headache days and moderate to severe
CA presented with higher scores. Given the independent burden of
photophobia in migraineurs, the use of UPSIS-12 scale should be
encouraged in Turkish population.
Keywords: Light sensitivity, migraine, photophobia, symptom impact,
UPSIS-12