Psychometric properties of the Cumulated Ambulation Score French translation

Abstract

Objective: To examine measurement properties (inter-rater reliability, agreement, validity, and responsiveness) of the Cumulated Ambulation Score French translation in patients with hip fracture.

Design: Methodological study.

Setting: A 20-bed orthopedic unit and 20-bed geriatric unit.

Subjects: About 140 consecutive patients with a mean (SD) age of 83 (12) years.

Interventions: The English version of the Cumulated Ambulation Score used to evaluate basic mobility was translated into French following international guidelines. Two raters independently assessed all patients on postoperative days one, two, three, and 30 after a hip fracture surgery. Relative and absolute inter-rater reliability and responsiveness (effect size for improvement from postoperative day two to 30) were evaluated. Convergent validity was analyzed by Spearman's correlation coefficient comparing the Cumulated Ambulation Score with two other measures on postoperative day two and 30.

Main measure: Cumulated Ambulation Score.

Results: The weighted Kappa value ranged from 0.89 to 1.0. The standard error of measurement and the smallest real difference of the Cumulated Ambulation Score ranged, respectively, from 0.12 to 0.23 and from 0.32 to 0.6 points, while the effect size reached 1.03 (95% CI 0.87-1.26). There was a strong positive correlation comparing the Cumulated Ambulation Score with the French Tinetti Assessment Tool (r ⩾ 0.83) and the French Mini Motor Test (r ⩾ 0.79).

Conclusions: Our findings indicate that the Cumulated Ambulation Score's French version is a reliable and valid tool to assess patients' basic mobility with hip fractures.

Keywords: Hip fracture; basic mobility; elderly patients; fragility fracture; validation score.