Assessment of Patient-Reported Physical Function in Persons With Upper Extremity Amputation: Comparison of Short Form Instruments.
Linda J Resnik, Phillip M Stevens, Pengsheng Ni and 2 others
PMID 35703194WHAT IT FOUND
The 13-item PROMIS Upper Extremity measure scored with amputation-specific calibration outperformed the standard 7-item version.
It provided more reliable scores across a wider range of function, though it failed to distinguish between prosthesis users and non-users.
Key findings
01The 13-item PROMIS Upper Extremity measure with amputation-specific calibration (PROMIS-13 UE AMP) was more reliable across a wider range of scores than the 6- and 7-item versions.
0291.4% of participants had PROMIS-13 UE AMP scores with reliability greater than 0.8, compared to 70.4% for the 7-item version and 72.1% for the 6-item version.
03The measure did not detect significant differences in physical function between prosthesis users and non-users, even after stratifying by amputation level.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
The study used a convenience sample recruited from VA and private sources, which may limit generalizability. Data were collected via telephone, which may introduce mode effects, although prior research suggests these are minimal for PROMIS. The measure failed to detect differences between prosthesis users and non-users, suggesting it may not be sensitive to the specific functional impacts of prosthetic engagement. Researchers could not verify if participants actually used two hands or their prosthesis when answering items about bilateral tasks. Response categories had to be collapsed (from 5 to 3 options) because respondents could not meaningfully distinguish between the middle difficulty levels.
Declared interests
The authors declared no competing interests.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that a higher PROMIS score in a prosthesis user indicates superior function compared to a non-user. The study found no significant difference between these groups, suggesting the measure may not capture the specific functional benefits or challenges of prosthetic use.