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. 2022 Jul 12;21(1):124.
doi: 10.1186/s12904-022-01017-z.

Barthel Index is a valid and reliable tool to measure the functional independence of cancer patients in palliative care

Vinício Dos Santos Barros  1   2 , Daniela Bassi-Dibai  3 , César Leonardo Ribeiro Guedes  1   2 , Daniel Nunes Morais  4 , Sabrina Marinho Coutinho  4 , Gabriel de Oliveira Simões  4 , Letícia Padilha Mendes  4 , Plínio da Cunha Leal  5 , Almir Vieira Dibai-Filho  6   7   8
Affiliations

Barthel Index is a valid and reliable tool to measure the functional independence of cancer patients in palliative care

Vinício Dos Santos Barros et al. BMC Palliat Care. .

Abstract

Background: Our objective was to verify the reliability, internal consistency and construct validity of the Barthel Index in Brazilian cancer patients in palliative care.

Methods: We included patients with cancer, both sexes, and age greater than or equal to 18 years. We used to evaluate patients the Barthel Index, Karnofsky Performance Scale (KPS), and European Organization for Research in the Treatment of Cancer Questionnaire-core 15 (EORTC-QLQ-C15-PAL). The measurement properties evaluated in this study were test-retest and inter-rater reliability and construct validity (tested by means of correlations with other instruments).

Results: We included 220 patients for construct validity and a subsample of 27 patients for reliability analyses. We observed adequate reliability (intraclass correlation coefficient ≥ 0.962) and internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = 0.942). There were adequate correlations between the Barthel Index and the KPS (rho = 0.766), and the functional capacity domain of the EORTC-QLQ-C15-PAL (rho = -0.698).

Conclusion: The Brazilian version of the Barthel Index presents adequate test-retest and inter-rater reliability, acceptable internal consistency, and valid construct for measuring functional independence in cancer patients.

Keywords: Cancer; Functional capacity; Surveys and questionnaires.

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Conflict of interest statement

None.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Bland–Altman plot of agreement between test–retest measures (n = 27)
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Bland–Altman plot of agreement between inter-rater measures (n = 27)
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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