Korean version of the scale for the assessment and rating of ataxia in ataxic stroke patients

• Published in: Annals of rehabilitation medicine Vol. 38; no. 6; pp. 742 - 751
• Main Authors: Kim, Bo-Ram, Lee, Jin-Youn, Kim, Min Jeong, Jung, Heeyoune, Lee, Jongmin
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Korea (South) Korean Academy of Rehabilitation Medicine 01.12.2014; 대한재활의학회
• Subjects: Original; 재활의학; Ataxia; Stroke; Ataxia assessment; Rehabilitation
• ISSN: 2234-0645; 2234-0653
• DOI: 10.5535/arm.2014.38.6.742

To investigate the intra-rater and inter-rater reliability and usefulness of the Korean version of the Scale for the Assessment and Rating of Ataxia (K-SARA) in ataxic stroke patients. The original SARA was translated into Korean, back translated to English, and compared to the original version. Stroke patients (n=60) with ataxia were evaluated using the K-SARA by one physiatrist and one occupational therapist. All subjects were rated twice. We divided the subjects into 5 groups by Functional Ambulation Category (FAC) and 3 groups based on the ataxia subscale of the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS). The mean K-SARA scores representing each group of FAC and the ataxia subscale of NIHSS were compared. The test-retest correlation coefficient of the K-SARA was 0.997 by the therapist and 1.00 by the physiatrist (p<0.001). The inter-rater correlation coefficient of the K-SARA was 0.985 (p<0.001). The ataxia subscale of NIHSS did not correlate with K-SARA. There was a significant difference in the mean K-SARA score by FAC (p<0.001). K-SARA is a reliable and valid measure of ataxia in stroke patients in Korea.