Assessment of the psychometric properties of the Italian version of the revised impact of miscarriage scale (RIMS): a validity and reliability study

Background: Miscarriage is a traumatic life event that involves over forty thousand Italian women every year. Women affected by this loss can have long-term psychological consequences. For this reason, it is paramount to identify women at risk of developing such complications to ensure they receive proper support. The aim of this study is to perform a translation into Italian and a validation of the Revised Impact of Miscarriage Scale (RIMS), which is a valuable support for healthcare professionals to assess women after a miscarriage. Methods: Double-translation technique was performed. A sample of 543 women completed the survey for the validation process which included RIMS, the Perinatal Grief Scale (PGS) and NSESSS. These last two instruments are usually used to assess the impact of perinatal loss on women’s life. Results: The Italian version of RIMS (RIMS-IT) has good internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha value 0,89). Factor analysis was conducted to confirm the construct validity and three factors were extracted. They reflected the factorial analysis of the original version. Scores of RIMS, PGS, and NSESSS were strongly correlated. Conclusions: RIMS-IT can be a valuable support for clinicians and researchers to identify women at risk of developing psychiatric symptoms and to analyse factors involved in the onset of these complications.