Test-retest reliability at the item level and total score level of the Norwegian version of the Spinal Cord Injury Falls Concern Scale (SCI-FCS).

OBJECTIVES

Translation of the Spinal Cord Injury Falls Concern Scale (SCI-FCS), and investigation of test-retest reliability on item-level and total-score-level.

DESIGN

Translation, adaptation and test-retest study.

SETTING

A specialized rehabilitation setting in Norway.

PARTICIPANTS

Fifty-four wheelchair users with a spinal cord injury. The median age of the cohort was 49 years, and the median number of years after injury was 13. Interventions/measurements: The SCI-FCS was translated and back-translated according to guidelines. Individuals answered the SCI-FCS twice over the course of one week. We investigated item-level test-retest reliability using Svensson's rank-based statistical method for disagreement analysis of paired ordinal data. For relative reliability, we analyzed the total-score-level test-retest reliability with intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC2.1), the standard error of measurement (SEM), and the smallest detectable change (SDC) for absolute reliability/measurement-error assessment and Cronbach's alpha for internal consistency.

RESULTS

All items showed satisfactory percentage agreement (≥69%) between test and retest. There were small but non-negligible systematic disagreements among three items; we recovered an 11-13% higher chance for a lower second score. There was no disagreement due to random variance. The test-retest agreement (ICC2.1) was excellent (0.83). The SEM was 2.6 (12%), and the SDC was 7.1 (32%). The Cronbach's alpha was high (0.88).

CONCLUSION

The Norwegian SCI-FCS is highly reliable for wheelchair users with chronic spinal cord injuries.