ABSTRACT
Background and purpose
Mini-Balance Evaluation Systems Test (mini-BESTest) is a widely used measure to assess balance impairments. This study aimed to assess the validity, reliability, responsiveness, and minimal clinically important change (MCIC) of the Persian mini-BESTest among ambulatory People with Multiple Sclerosis (PwMS).
Methods
Fifty ambulatory PwMS participated in this study. Persian mini-BESTest validated against Berg Balance Scale (BBS) and Timed-Up and Go (TUG) with/without a cognitive task. To assess the reliability, the Persian mini-BESTest was re-administered for a sample of 30 participants after 1 week. Also, 32 PwMS were tested before and after a 4-week of balance and gait training to assess the responsiveness.
Results
No floor/ceiling effect was found for the mini-BESTest total score. There were significant excellent correlations (p < .001) between mini-BESTest and BBS (r = 0.71), TUG (r = −0.76), and cognitive TUG (r = −0.73). No strong correlations were observed between the subscales (r = 0.37–0.55). Test–retest reliability and internal consistency of Persian mini-BESTest total score were excellent, with Intra-class Correlation Coefficient (ICC3,1 and Cronbach's alpha level of 0.89 and 0.80, respectively. The minimal detectable change was 4 points. The Persian mini-BESTest had acceptable responsiveness (AUC = 0.83), and MCIC was 5 points.
Conclusion
The Persian mini-BESTest is a valid, reliable, and responsive measure of balance performance in Iranian ambulatory PwMS.
Acknowledgement
This study is part of the Ph.D. thesis of Farshad Molhemi. Special thanks to Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences for financial support (Grant number: PHT-0011). Thanks to Khuzestan MS Society and PwMS participated in this study.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
Correction Statement
This article has been corrected with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.