Establishing the Turkish version of the SIGAM mobility scale, and determining its validity and reliability in lower extremity amputees

Abstract

Purpose: The aim of this study is to adapt the Special Interest Group in Amputee Medicine (SIGAM) mobility scale to Turkish, and to test its validity and reliability in lower extremity amputees.

Material and methods: Adaptation of the scale into Turkish was performed by following the steps in American Association of Orthopedic Surgeons (AAOS) guideline. Turkish version of the scale was tested twice on 109 patients who had lower extremity amputations, at hours 0 and 72. The reliability of the Turkish version was tested for internal consistency and test–retest reliability. Structural validity was tested using the “scale validity” method. For this purpose, the scores of the Short Form-36 (SF-36), Functional Ambulation Scale (FAS), Get Up and Go Test, and Satisfaction with the Prosthesis Questionnaire (SATPRO) were calculated, and analyzed using Spearman’s correlation test.

Results: Cronbach’s alpha coefficient was 0.67 for the Turkish version of the SIGAM mobility scale. Cohen's kappa coefficients were between 0.224 and 0.999. Repeatability according to the results of the SIGAM mobility scale (grades A–F) was 0.822. We found significant and strong positive correlations of the SIGAM mobility scale results with the FAS, Get Up and Go Test, SATPRO, and all of the SF-36 subscales.

Conclusion: In our study, the Turkish version of the SIGAM mobility scale was found as a reliable, valid, and easy to use scale in everyday practice for measuring mobility in lower extremity amputees.

Implications for Rehabilitation

• Amputation is the surgical removal of a severely injured and nonfunctional extremity, at a level of one or more bones proximal to the body.

• Loss of a lower extremity is one of the most important conditions that cause functional disability.

• The Special Interest Group in Amputee Medicine (SIGAM) mobility scale contains 21 questions that evaluate the mobility of lower extremity amputees.

• Lack of a specific Turkish scale that evaluates rehabilitation results and mobility of lower extremity amputees, and determines their needs, directed us to perform a study on this topic when we took the number of amputations performed in our country into consideration.

• SIGAM mobility scale is directed at rehabilitation specialists who are working in amputee medicine. Turkish version of this scale was found both reliable and valid in our study and hence it can be used in clinical practice and studies.

Keywords:

• Prosthesis
• amputation
• mobility scale
• psychometric
• Turkey

Acknowledgements

We express our gratitude to Muge Ozcan MD, Ipek Ziraman MD, and Ms. Zeynep Kaya for their support in translation of this manuscript.

Disclosure statement

The authors report no declarations of interest.