Necessity to develop a tool to evaluate activity of daily living for electric powered indoor/outdoor chair users.
OBJECTIVE
To evaluate changes in activity of daily living before and after provision of electric-powered indoor/outdoor chair (EPIOC), discuss problems of current activities of daily living (ADL) evaluating tools for EPIOC users, and provide preliminary data to develop ADL evaluation tool for EPIOC user.


METHODS
A total of 70 users who were prescribed EPIOC and had been using for more than 1 year were recruited in this study. Before and after provision of EPIOC, MBI and FIM scores were measured and a questionnaire consisting of six categories (general socioeconomic states, currently using state, whether EPIOC was helpful for social participation and occupational chances, psychiatric influences, self-reported degrees of independency, and barriers of using EPIOC) was used.


RESULTS
No difference in MBI scores before and after provision of EPIOC was observed. However, the wheelchair ambulation category showed a significant difference. While motor FIM was not significantly different from MBI, FIM score were significantly (p<0.05) higher than MBI. For questions regarding social participation frequency, helpfulness of EPIOC on confidence, refreshing patients' emotions and self-reported degrees of independence, all of them showed positive responses. Especially, EPIOC users' self-reported degree of independency showed favorable results. There was discrepancy in MBI or FIM measured by physicians.


CONCLUSIONS
Our study showed that there was a gap between the existing ADL evaluation tool and the ADL level that EPIOC users were actually feeling. Thus, it is necessary to develop an evaluation tool specifically for EPIOC.
Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Konkuk University School of Medicine, Chungju, Korea.
Jiwon
J
Lee
Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Konkuk University School of Medicine, Chungju, Korea.
Jae Kuk
JK
Lim
Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Konkuk University School of Medicine, Chungju, Korea.
Min Jun
MJ
Lee
Department of Neurology, Konkuk University School of Medicine, Chungju, Korea.
Yoon-Sik
YS
Jo
Department of Neurosurgery, Konkuk University School of Medicine, Chungju, Korea.
Jae Sung
JS
Park
Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Konkuk University School of Medicine, Chungju, Korea.
Jong Moon
JM
Kim
Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Konkuk University School of Medicine, Chungju, Korea.
Shin Kyoung
SK
Kim
Activities of daily living; Disability evaluation; Self-help devices; Wheelchairs