Braz J Phys Ther. 2013 May-Jun;17(3):195-217. doi: 10.1590/s1413-35552012005000085.
Older adults and individuals with neurological problems such as Parkinson's disease (PD) exhibit balance deficits that might impair their mobility and independence. The assessment of balance must be useful in identifying the presence of instability and orient interventions.
To translate and perform a cross-cultural adaptation of the Balance Evaluation Systems Test (BESTest) and MiniBESTest to Brazilian Portuguese and analyze its psychometric properties.
The tests were translated and adapted to Portuguese according to a standard method and then subjected to a test-retest reliability assessment (10 older adults; 10 individuals with PD). The psychometric properties were assessed by the Rasch model (35 older adults; 35 individuals with PD).
The reliability coefficient of the tests relative to the items and subjects varied from 0.91 and 0.98, which is indicative of the stability and reproducibility of the measures. In the BESTest, the person (4.19) and item (5.36) separation index established six balance ability levels and seven levels of difficulty, respectively. In the MiniBESTest, the person (3.16) and item (6.41) separation index established four balance ability levels and nine levels of difficulty, respectively. Two items in the BESTest did not fit with the model expectations, but the construct validity was not compromised. No item in the MiniBESTest was erratic.
The results corroborate the diagnostic and screening functions of the BESTest and MiniBESTest, respectively, and indicate that the Brazilian versions exhibit adequate reliability, construct validity, response stability, and capacity to distinguish among various balance ability levels in older adults and individuals with PD.
老年人和患有帕金森病（PD）等神经问题的个体表现出平衡缺陷，这可能会影响他们的活动能力和独立性。平衡评估必须有助于确定不稳定的存在，并指导干预措施。
将平衡评估系统测试（BESTest）和 MiniBESTest 翻译成巴西葡萄牙语并进行跨文化适应性调整，并分析其心理测量学特性。
根据标准方法对测试进行翻译和改编，然后对其进行重测信度评估（10 名老年人；10 名 PD 患者）。使用 Rasch 模型（35 名老年人；35 名 PD 患者）评估心理测量学特性。
相对于项目和受试者，测试的可靠性系数从 0.91 到 0.98 不等，这表明了测量的稳定性和可重复性。在 BESTest 中，个体（4.19）和项目（5.36）分离指数分别确定了六个平衡能力水平和七个难度水平。在 MiniBESTest 中，个体（3.16）和项目（6.41）分离指数分别确定了四个平衡能力水平和九个难度水平。BESTest 中的两个项目不符合模型预期，但并未损害结构效度。MiniBESTest 中没有项目出现异常。
结果证实了 BESTest 和 MiniBESTest 的诊断和筛查功能，并且表明巴西版本具有足够的可靠性、结构效度、反应稳定性以及区分老年人和 PD 患者各种平衡能力水平的能力。
