Volume 33, Issue 9 e14102
ORIGINAL ARTICLE

The Spanish version of the esophageal hypervigilance and anxiety score shows strong psychometric properties: Results of a large prospective multicenter study in Spain and Latin America

Daniel Cisternas

Corresponding Author

Daniel Cisternas

Facultad de Medicina Clínica Alemana, Clínica Alemana de Santiago, Universidad del Desarrollo, Santiago, Chile

Correspondence

Daniel Cisternas, Clínica Alemana de Santiago, Avenida Vitacura 5951, Santiago 6681920, Chile.

Email: [email protected]

Search for more papers by this author
Tiffany Taft

Tiffany Taft

Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, USA

Search for more papers by this author
Dustin A. Carlson

Dustin A. Carlson

Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, USA

Search for more papers by this author
Esteban Glasinovic

Esteban Glasinovic

Facultad de Medicina Clínica Alemana, Clínica Alemana de Santiago, Universidad del Desarrollo, Santiago, Chile

Search for more papers by this author
Hugo Monrroy

Hugo Monrroy

Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile

Search for more papers by this author
Paula Rey

Paula Rey

Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile

Search for more papers by this author
Albis Hani

Albis Hani

San Ignacio Hospital, Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, Bogota, Colombia

Search for more papers by this author
Andres Ardila-Hani

Andres Ardila-Hani

San Ignacio Hospital, Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, Bogota, Colombia

Search for more papers by this author
Ana Maria Leguizamo

Ana Maria Leguizamo

San Ignacio Hospital, Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, Bogota, Colombia

Search for more papers by this author
Claudio Bilder

Claudio Bilder

Hospital Universitario, Escuela de Medicina, Fundación Favaloro, Buenos Aires, Argentina

Search for more papers by this author
Andres Ditaranto

Andres Ditaranto

Hospital Universitario, Escuela de Medicina, Fundación Favaloro, Buenos Aires, Argentina

Search for more papers by this author
Amanda Varela

Amanda Varela

Hospital Universitario, Escuela de Medicina, Fundación Favaloro, Buenos Aires, Argentina

Search for more papers by this author
Joaquin Agotegaray

Joaquin Agotegaray

Hospital Universitario, Escuela de Medicina, Fundación Favaloro, Buenos Aires, Argentina

Search for more papers by this author
Jose Maria Remes-Troche

Jose Maria Remes-Troche

Universidad Veracruzana, Veracruz, México

Search for more papers by this author
Antonio Ruiz de León

Antonio Ruiz de León

Hospital Clínico San Carlos, Universidad Complutense Madrid, Spain

Search for more papers by this author
Julio Pérez de la Serna

Julio Pérez de la Serna

Hospital Clínico San Carlos, Universidad Complutense Madrid, Spain

Search for more papers by this author
Ingrid Marin

Ingrid Marin

Motility and Functional Gut Disorders Unit, Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Hepáticas y Digestivas (CIBERehd), University Hospital Germans Trias i Pujol, Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona, Badalona, Spain

Search for more papers by this author
Jordi Serra

Jordi Serra

Digestive System Research Unit, Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Hepáticas y Digestivas (CIBERehd), University Hospital Vall d’Hebron, Barcelona, Spain

Search for more papers by this author
First published: 13 February 2021
Citations: 2

Funding

No funding declared.

Abstract

Background

Anxiety is a significant modulator of sensitivity along the GI tract. The recently described Esophageal Hypervigilance and Anxiety Score (EHAS) evaluates esophageal-specific anxiety. The aims of this study were as follows: 1. translate and validate an international Spanish version of EHAS. 2. Evaluate its psychometric properties in a large Hispano-American sample of symptomatic individuals.

Methods

A Spanish EHAS version was developed by a Delphi process and reverse translation. Patients referred for high-resolution manometry (HRM) were recruited prospectively from seven Spanish and Latin American centers. Several scores were used: EHAS, Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), Eckardt score (ES), Gastroesophageal Reflux Questionnaire (GERDQ), and the Brief Esophageal Dysphagia Questionnaire (BEDQ). Standardized psychometric analyses were performed.

Key Results

A total of 443 patients were recruited. Spanish EHAS showed excellent reliability (Cronbach´s alpha = 0.94). Factor analysis confirmed the presence of two factors, corresponding to the visceral anxiety and hypervigilance subscales. Sufficient convergent validity was shown by moderate significant correlations between EHAS and other symptomatic scores. Patients with high EHAS scores had significantly more dysphagia. There was no difference in EHAS scores when compared normal vs abnormal or major manometric diagnosis.

Conclusions and Inferences

A widely usable Spanish EHAS version has been validated. We confirm its excellent psychometric properties in our patients, confirming the appropriateness of its use in different populations. Our findings support the appropriateness of evaluating esophageal anxiety across the whole manometric diagnosis spectrum.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST

No competing interests declared.

DATA AVAILABILITY STATEMENT

The data supporting the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author (DC), upon reasonable request.

The full text of this article hosted at iucr.org is unavailable due to technical difficulties.