title: Construction and pilot assessment of the Lower Limb Function Assessment Scale.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Stroke often leads to upright standing and walking impairments. Clinical assessments do not sufficiently address ecological aspects and the patient's subjective evaluation of function.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To perform a pilot assessment of the psychometric properties of the Lower Limb-Function Assessment Scale (LL-FAS).
  
  
  METHODS
  The LL-FAS includes 30 items assessing the patient's perception (in a questionnaire) and the examiner's perception (in a practical test) of upright standing and walking impairments and their impact on activities of daily living. We analyzed the LL-FAS's reliability, construct validity, internal consistency, predictive validity and feasibility.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Thirty-five stroke patients were included. The scale's mean ± SD completion time was 25 ± 6 min. Intra-observer reliability was good to excellent (intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC >0.82). Interobserver reliability was moderate (0.67 < ICC < 0.9). The questionnaire and test items showed excellent construct validity for neuromotor disabilities (p < 0.05), postural ability (Postural Assessment Scale for Stroke; p < 10-5), severity of gait disorders (Gait Assessment and Intervention Tool; p < 10-3), walking ability (New Functional Ambulation Categories, 10 m walk test, Rivermead Mobility Index; p < 10-3) and functional level (Barthel Index; p < 10-3). Internal consistency (Cronbach-α >0.9) and predictive validity were excellent.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The LL-FAS showed fair psychometric properties in this pilot study and may be of value for evaluating post-stroke lower limb impairment.
authors.affiliation: Neurorehabilitation Unit, University Medical Center, University of Lille 2, Lille, France.
authors.forename: Etienne
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Allart
authors.affiliation: Neurorehabilitation Unit, University Medical Center, University of Lille 2, Lille, France Neurorehabilitation Unit, Sainte-Anne Hospital, Paris, France.
authors.forename: Julie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Paquereau
authors.affiliation: Neurorehabilitation Unit, University Medical Center, University of Lille 2, Lille, France.
authors.forename: Caroline
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Rogeau
authors.affiliation: Neurorehabilitation Unit, University Medical Center, University of Lille 2, Lille, France.
authors.forename: Walter
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Daveluy
authors.affiliation: Neurorehabilitation Unit, University Medical Center, University of Lille 2, Lille, France.
authors.forename: Odile
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Kozlowski
authors.affiliation: Neurorehabilitation Unit, University Medical Center, University of Lille 2, Lille, France.
authors.forename: Marc
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rousseaux
mesh_terms: D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D005684:Gait; D006801:Humans; D035002:Lower Extremity / Q000502:physiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D063868:Patient Outcome Assessment; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011187:Posture; D011594:Psychometrics; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D000071939:Stroke Rehabilitation; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires / Q000592:standards*; D016138:Walking
keywords: Stroke; assessment; gait; posture; scale; walking