Validation and calibration to Spanish of the Compliance Questionnaire on Rheumatology in a group of Colombian patients on treatment for rheumatoid arthritis

Introduction: Adherence to treatment is one of the pillars to achieve control of any disease and this also applies to rheumatoid arthritis. There are different ways to assess the level of adherence, and measurement scales are one of the methods most used due to their easy application and low cost. The aim of this study was to translate and validate the Compliance Questionnaire on Rheumatology (CQR) to Spanish and calibrate the scores according to the activity of the disease measured by the DAS-28. Materials and methods: The translation process was carried out in the first phase of the study using guidelines for translation and cultural adaptation of measures focused on patients. This was followed by cognitive clarification process. Finally, a study of diagnostic tests was carried out to determine the best cut-off point for the score on the CQR scale for identifying the level of adherence to rheumatic therapy in patients with rheumatoid arthritis using the DAS-28 as subrogated adherence. Results: The study included 233 patients, with a mean age of 46.3 (± 13.9) years and mean time with the disease of 11.2 (± 9.6) years. The CQR cut-off to establish adherence to treatment was 80.7. This achieved a sensitivity of 80.2% (95% CI: 71.9-86.9%) and specificity of 72.3% (95% CI: 63.1-80.4%). With this cut-off point, it was established that there was 43.8% (n = 102) patient adherence to oral rheumatic therapy. Conclusion: CQR Spanish version of the CQR was developed and calibrated obtaining a practical tool, with acceptable sensitivity and specificity.