Reliability, Validity, and Responsiveness of the Patient-Specific Functional Scale for Measuring Mobility-Related Goals in People With Multiple Sclerosis.
Mark M Mañago, Evan T Cohen, Michelle H Cameron and 2 others
PMID 36897202WHAT IT FOUND
The Patient-Specific Functional Scale reliably tracks mobility goals in multiple sclerosis.
A score improvement of 2.5 points signals the patient feels much better. This tool captures personal goals that standard walking tests miss, making it useful for tracking individual progress.
Key findings
01The PSFS demonstrated moderate test-retest reliability and high responsiveness to intervention in people with MS.
02A change in the PSFS total score of at least 2.5 points identifies a clinically important, patient-perceived improvement in mobility.
03The PSFS showed no ceiling or floor effects across a wide range of disability, unlike the MSWS-12 which showed floor effects.
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 sample size was small (n=32), which reduces the precision of the estimated minimal clinically important difference. Participants were restricted to selecting mobility-related goals; the PSFS has not been validated here for other types of goals (e.g., cognitive or communication). Cognition was not formally assessed, so mild cognitive impairment may have affected how participants selected or rated their activities. The Global Rating of Change scale used to determine the MCID is subject to recall bias.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest. The study was supported by the NIH.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume the PSFS measures general quality of life or walking speed. It specifically measures the patient's perception of their ability to perform three chosen mobility tasks. A patient may improve on the PSFS without changing their Timed 25-Foot Walk time, because the PSFS captures personal functional gains that speed tests miss.