Objective. To evaluate the validity, reliability, and cultural relevance of the Arthritis Impact Measurement Scales 2 (AIMS2) as a health assessment tool for Chinese-speaking patients with arthritis. Methods. The cultural relevance, language equivalency, and content validity of the AIMS2, Chinese version (CAIMS2) were evaluated by an expert panel. Measurement performance was tested on 240 subjects (rheumatoid arthritis ‫؍‬ 81, osteoarthritis ‫؍‬ 77, healthy ‫؍‬ 82). Subjects (n ‫؍‬ 175) were retested within 2 weeks for testing of reliability. Results. Three items were modified and 2 items were added, as suggested by the expert panel. Interitem reliability was satisfactory (intraclass correlation coefficient 0.8552-0.9594). Test-retest reliability of the CAIMS2 subscales ranged from 0.770 to 0.952 in subjects in whom the CAIMS2 was self administered. Significant score differences between patients with arthritis and healthy subjects were found in all 12 subscales, except for the support from family and friends and tension subscales. CAIMS2 subscale scores correlated with clinical and laboratory measures of disease activity and patients' perceived quality of life as measured using the INTRODUCTIONThe Arthritis Impact Measurement Scales (AIMS) have been widely used to assess the health status of people with arthritis in many countries for years (1-9). Extensive testing and refinement have been done to make AIMS a reliable, valid, and sensitive tool for evaluating the health status of individuals with arthritis (1,10 -12). Previous studies evaluating the efficiency and sensitivity of existing health status measures have demonstrated that the AIMS was efficient in assessing patients' mobility, pain level, and global functional impairment (13). In 1992, Meenan et al (14) further revised the measure (AIMS2) to cover aspects of arthritis relevant health status-arm function, work, and support from family and friends-that were not addressed by the previous measure. Three sections were also added to assess the respondents' satisfaction with current level of function, problem areas, and areas in which they wanted improvement. Empirical data supported that the AIMS2 is valid and reliable.Chinese people make up almost one-quarter of the world's population. Han Chinese made up 93.5% of the population in the People's Republic of China where Mandarin is the official language. Although there are 201 living languages (dialects) in China, the people in China share a unified writing system (Ethnologue.com, 2002). Recently, health status measures, such as the Short Form 36, Health Assessment Questionnaire, and the World Health Organization Quality of Life instrument (WHOQOL-BREF), have been translated and validated for Chinese-speaking patients (15-17). However, these general questionnaires are not as comprehensive, sensitive, or specific as the AIMS2 in detecting health changes in arthritis patients (13). The aim of this study was therefore to translate AIMS2 into Chinese (CAIMS2) and evaluate its validity. SUBJECTS AND METHODS