Review
The Aging Males' Symptoms (AMS) scale: Update and compilation of international versions
1 ZEG – Center for Epidemiology & Health Research Berlin, Invalidenstr. 115, 10115 Berlin, Germany
2 SBU Fertility Control/Hormone Therapy, Schering AG, PB 650311, 13342 Berlin, Germany
3 Medical Affairs Gynaecology, Jenapharm Jena, Otto-Schott-Str.15, 07745 Jena, Germany
4 Strategy & Business Development Department, NV Organon, PO Box 20, 5340 Oss, The Netherlands
5 PharmacoEconomics Programmes, Pierre Fabre S.A., 45 Place Abel Gance, 92654 Boulogne-Billancourt Cedex, France
6 Health Outcomes Research Europe, c/Plato, 6-1°5a, 08021 Barcelona, Spain
7 NFO Health Europe, Landsberger Straβe 338, 80687 Munich, Germany
8 Department of Endocrinology, University Hospital Ghent, 9K12 IE, De Pintelaan 185, 9000 Gent, Belgium
9 Institute of Biomedicine and Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Turku, 20520 Turku, Finland
10 Russian Centre for Endocrinology, Russian Medical Academy, Ulyanova Street 11, 117036 Moscow, Russia
11 Department of Preventive Medicine, College of Medicine, Pochon CHA University, Pochon, Korea
12 Linguistic Validation Department, MAPI Research Institute, 27 rue de la Villette, 69003 Lyon, France
Health and Quality of Life Outcomes 2003, 1:15 doi:10.1186/1477-7525-1-15
Published: 1 May 2003Abstract
Background
The interest of clinical research in aging males increased in recent years and thereby the interest to measure health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and symptoms of aging men. The Aging Males' Symptoms scale (AMS) became the most commonly used scale to measure HRQoL and symptoms in aging males in many countries worldwide. The aim of this paper is to review the current state of the instrument particularly concerning versions of the scale in different languages in the light of the quality of the translation process.
AMS versions available
Most of the translations were performed following international methodological recommendations for linguistic & cultural adaptation of HRQoL instruments. Mainly the English version was used as source language for the translation into Dutch, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Swedish, and Japanese (attached as additional PDF-files). Preliminary versions that were derived only from forward translations are of secondary quality and available in Finnish, Flemish, and Russian. It is recommended to complete the translation process for the latter languages before using them in international studies.
Translations in process
The AMS scale is in the process of consensus finding of two existing French versions, and the versions in the Korean, Thai, and Indonesian languages have not yet been completed in the translation process.
Conclusion
The AMS scale is obviously a valuable tool for assessing health related quality of life in aging men, because it is used worldwide. It is a standardized scale according to psychometric norms. Most of the currently available language versions were translated following international standards for linguistic and cultural translation of quality of life scales. Assistance is offered to help interested parties in the translation process.
