Background: Vertigo Symptom Scale (VSS) by Yardley et al. (1992) is one of the disease specific
questionnaires used widely in clinical settings. It is conducted in English and had been translated into six languages including Dutch, French, German, Spanish, Swedish, and Turkish. It has been acknowledged as a good subjective tool to determine the severity of balance disorders. Objective: To develop a valid Malay version of VSS (MVVSS) using appropriate translation methods and validation technique. Method: Forward and backward translation was performed by four professionals from different fields. The translated questionnaire was then assessed for its test reliability based on an experiment on 30 normal subjects. Further, to determine the cultural adaptation issues, the face validity of MVVSS was assessed from 32 normal subjects. They were asked to fill in the MVVSS questionnaire accordingly and give opinions regarding its language, understanding and overall format of questionnaire. Results: Final results of the translation process showed sufficient concurrence among the professionals involved. The reliability test among the normal subjects also showed a high Cronbach’s alpha value (0.90). The face validity method on 32 subjects (mean age of 29.9 ± 9.2 years) showed good feedbacks in terms of language, understanding and overall format of the MVVSS. Conclusion: The translation process was successful and the further validation showed an adequate face validity response. This suggests that our MVVSS has been culturally adapted and can be used in all Malay conversing patients.