Relationship Between the Total Percentage Scores on the Questionnaire (WST-Q) and Objective (WST) Versions of the Wheelchair Skills Test (Version 4.2) for Manual Wheelchair Users with Spinal Cord Injury
R. Lee Kirby, Lynn A. Worobey, Rachel Cowan, Jessica Presperin Pedersen, Allen W. Heinemann, Trevor Dyson-Hudson, Mary Shea, Cher Smith, Paula W. Rushton, Michael L. Boninger
From the Division of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada ( Kirby); Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA (Worobey, Boninger); The Miami Project To Cure Paralysis, Department Of Neurological Surgery, University Of Miami, Miami, FL (Cowan); Rehabilitation Institute Of Chicago, Chicago, IL (Presperin Pedersen, Heinemann); Kessler Foundation, West Orange, NJ (Dyson-Hudson); Kessler Institute For Rehabilitation, West Orange, NJ (Shea); Capital District Health Authority, Halifax, NS, Canada ( Smith); Universite de Montreal, Montreal, QC (Rushton)ABSTRACT
To assess the relationship between the questionnaire (WST-Q) and objective (WST) versions of the Wheelchair Skills Test Version 4.2 for manual wheelchair users with spinal cord (SCI) injury, we conducted a multi-center descriptive study based on cross-sectional data collected at baseline as part of a larger study. Participants were community-dwelling people with SCI who used manual wheelchairs as their primary means of mobility. Each completed the WST-Q and the WST at a single session. The mean (SD) WST-Q total percentage capacity score (n = 120) was 84.7% (13.2) and the median (interquartile range [IQR]) was 88.0% (77-97). The mean (SD) WST-Q total percentage performance score was 74.6% (13.2) and the median (IQR) was 75.5% (66.0-83.8). The mean (SD) WST total percentage capacity score (n = 113) was 77.3% (15.2) and the median (IQR) was 81.0 (81-90). The Spearman correlation coefficient for WST-Q capacity vs WST-Q performance was 0.629 (p < 0.001). The mean WST-Q capacity score exceeded the WST-Q performance score by 10.1% (p <0.001). The Spearman correlation coefficient for WST-Q capacity vs WST capacity was 0.770 (p < 0.001). The mean WST-Q capacity score exceeded the WST capacity score by 7.4% (p <0.001). The total percentage WST-Q and WST scores are correlated highly but WST-Q capacity scores slightly exceed both WST-Q performance scores and WST capacity scores. These findings should be considered when choosing and interpreting these outcome measures.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This study was funded by the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR), Grant Number H133N110011, 2011-2016.We thank Sara Jerousek, BS, Emily Krobot, MSW, Michelle Oyster, MS, Luisa Betancourt, MD, William Weber, MSES, Brian Weiland, BS, Arielle Goldsmith, MS, and Kevin Dalal, MD, for project planning, implementation, management and analysis.