Cross-cultural adaptation and validation of the Japanese translation of the Fugl-Meyer Assessment for upper and lower extremity sensorimotor function after stroke.
Yukitaka Tomoda, Toru Nagao, Tomoko Uchida and 5 others
PMID 40762231WHAT IT FOUND
The Japanese Fugl-Meyer Assessment was translated and tested in 10 patients with chronic stroke.
Raters agreed on most items, with agreement above 90% for the majority. Only two sensation items showed scoring inconsistencies, which were corrected in the final version.
Key findings
01The translation process involved forward and backward translation by bilingual experts, followed by a pilot study to check for discrepancies.
02In the pilot study, intra- and inter-rater agreement was above 90% for most items, with all agreements considered acceptable.
03Systematic disagreement was found in only two light touch sensation items, leading to further revisions of the translation.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTs
Read the rest of this summary
You get three full summaries a month, free, and we do not ask for a card. Search, the TL;DRs and your library stay unlimited either way.
What it does not show
The pilot study included only 10 patients, which is a very small sample size for validating a complex assessment tool. All participants were in the chronic stage of stroke (more than 180 days post-stroke), so the reliability in acute or subacute patients is unknown. The raters had limited experience with the Fugl-Meyer Assessment, which may have influenced the agreement scores, although the authors argue this reflects real-world variability. The study did not assess construct validity or responsiveness to change, only translation accuracy and rater agreement.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest and received no financial support for this work.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume this tool is validated for acute stroke patients or that it predicts recovery outcomes. The study only tested translation accuracy and rater agreement in a small group of 10 patients with chronic stroke.