Background The Dysphagia Handicap Index (DHI) is a 25-item questionnaire that assesses the quality of life among individuals with dysphagia. The aim of this study was to translate and validate the Kannada version of DHI (DHI-K). Method Eighty-eight individuals with dysphagia and an equal number of healthy individuals filled out the DHI-K. Internal consistency and test–retest reproducibility were used for reliability testing. Validity was established by comparing DHI-K scores of patients with dysphagia and healthy controls. Results The overall Cronbach's α for DHI-K was .81, indicating good internal consistency. Cohen's κ agreement for test–retest reliability of self-perceived severity was found to be .9. Correlation between subscales of DHI and self-perceived severity was analyzed using Spearman correlation coefficient and was found to very high. The control group has significantly lower scores for all scales when compared to the dysphagia group (physical: t (174) = 31.74, p < .001; functional: t (174) = 32.65, p < .001; emotional: t (174) = 36.3, p < .001; total: t (174) = 34.08, p < .001). Conclusions This study demonstrates that DHI-K has good internal consistency, test–retest reliability, and concurrent validity. The results of the study also reveal that it is a reliable and valid tool for assessment of handicap in Kannada-speaking dysphagia population.

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