The reliability and validity of the Turkish version of the apraxia screen of TULIA in multiple sclerosis patients

Abstract

Purpose The study was aimed to analyze the psychometric properties of the Turkish version of the Apraxia Screen of TULIA (T-AST). Methods A total of 112 patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) were included in the study. T-AST tasks were performed once while recording with a video camera. Two physiotherapists scored T-AST, independently. Rater(1) performed a second assessment of apraxia with AST one week later. The disability was evaluated by Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS). Cognitive assessment was carried out with Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE). Depression was evaluated with Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D). Multiple Sclerosis International Quality of Life (MusiQoL) was used to assess the quality of life. In addition, fatigue was evaluated with Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS). Results The mean age of the patients was 42.3 +/- 11.0 years. The Cronbach's alpha coefficient of the rater(1)'s and rater(2)'s evaluation was 0.820 and 0.800, respectively. ICC score of the intra-rater reliability was 0.960. ICC score of the inter-rater reliability was 0.971. The Spearman correlation coefficients between T-AST and MMSE, EDSS, MusiQoL, HAM-D, FSS were low to excellent, respectively (r = 0.863; p < 0.001, r = -0.768; p < 0.001, r = -0.560; p < 0.001, r = -0.393, p < 0.001, r = -0.324, p < 0.001). Conclusion The Turkish version of the AST is a reliable and valid tool for assessing upper limb apraxia in patients with MS.