An Italian pilot study on the use of the migraine disability assessment questionnaire

Abstract

The migraine disability assessment questionnaire (MIDAS) is a recently developed, validated questionnaire for assessing the impact of migraine on individual patients. We carried out a pilot study to assess the stability and reliability of a preliminary Italian version of MIDAS, based on the original 6-item version. One hundred four patients with migraine without aura completed the MIDAS form during a session with a neurologist and again 21 days later. Eighhty-six patients (83%) returned the second form. Pearson's (r = 0.8) and Spearman's (r = 0.7) tests showed a good test-retest reliability for the scores obtained at first and second compilations. In the majority of patients, the disability grade was stable after 21 days (Wilcoxon signed rank test p > 0.05). Our preliminary adaptation of the MIDAS questionnaire is satisfactorily stable and highly reliable, preparing the way for definitive Italian version.