Reliability of the Fugl-Meyer assessment for testing motor performance in patients following stroke

Rehabilitation Services, St Peter's Hospital, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE. The purpose of this study was to establish the interrater reliability of assessments made with the Fugl-Meyer evaluation of physical performance in a rehabilitation setting. SUBJECTS. Twelve patients (7 male, 5 female), aged 49 to 86 years (mean = 66), who had sustained a cerebrovascular accident participated in the study. All patients were admitted consecutively to a rehabilitation center and were between 6 days and 6 months poststroke. METHODS. Three physical therapists, each with more than 10 years of experience, assessed the patients in a randomized and balanced order using this assessment. The therapists standardized the assessment approach prior to the study but did not discuss the procedure once the study began. RESULTS. The overall reliability was high (overall intraclass correlation coefficient = .96), and the intraclass correlation coefficients for the subsections of the assessment varied from .61 for pain to .97 for the upper extremity. CONCLUSION AND DISCUSSION. The relative merits of using the Fugl-Meyer assessment as a research tool versus a clinical assessment for stroke are discussed.

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