title: Development and Preliminary Reliability of the Functional Upper Extremity Levels (FUEL).
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The Functional Upper Extremity Levels (FUEL) is a new classification tool to assess a person's upper-extremity functional and physical performance after sustaining a stroke. The aim of this preliminary study was to develop the tool and determine its content validity and interrater reliability.
  
  
  METHODS
  Forty-four licensed occupational therapists ranging in years of experience from 6 mo to 16 yr participated in this study. A two-phase study was conducted: (1) constructing the FUEL and determining its content validity and (2) ascertaining its interrater reliability.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We found that the FUEL had initial content validity and substantial interrater reliability (Fleiss κ = .754).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The FUEL can be a useful clinical and research tool in occupational therapy for the assessment and classification of upper-extremity function for people after stroke. Further studies with larger samples and comparison studies with other similar tools are required to support the tool's reliability and validity.
authors.affiliation: Stephen Van Lew, MS, OTR/L, is Director of Occupational Therapy, New York University Langone Medical Center, New York, NY; steve.vanlew@nyumc.org.
authors.forename: Stephen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Van Lew
authors.affiliation: Daniel Geller, MS, MPH, OTR/L, is Occupational Therapy Research Clinical Specialist, New York University Langone Medical Center, New York, NY.
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Geller
authors.affiliation: Rachel Feld-Glazman, MS, OTR/L, is Occupational Therapy Program Director, Burke Rehabilitation Hospital, White Plains, NY.
authors.forename: Rachel
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Feld-Glazman
authors.affiliation: Nettie Capasso, MS, OTR/L, is Occupational Therapy Assistant Supervisor, New York University Langone Medical Center, New York, NY.
authors.forename: Nettie
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Capasso
authors.affiliation: Adrienne Dicembri, MPH, OTR/L, is Occupational Therapy Supervisor, New York University Langone Medical Center, New York, NY.
authors.forename: Adrienne
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Dicembri
authors.affiliation: Genevieve Pinto Zipp, EdD, PT, is Professor, Interprofessional Health Sciences and Health Administration Department, and Director, Center for Interprofessional Education in Health Sciences, Seton Hall University, South Orange, NJ.
authors.forename: Genevieve Pinto
authors.initials: GP
authors.lastname: Zipp