Brazilian version of the Nottingham Sensory Assessment: validity, agreement and reliability

To investigate the inter-rater and intra-rater reliability, construct validity and internal consistency of the Brazilian version of the Nottingham Sensory Assessment for Stroke Patients (NSA).

The instrument was translated into Portuguese from its original in English by a bilingual translator and was then back-translated into English. Twenty-one hemiparetics were evaluated by two examiners using the NSA and the Fugl-Meyer Assessment (FMA) of physical performance.

Significant correlation were found between the FMA and the NSA (r=0.752). The NSA showed excellent internal consistency (0.86), and there were acceptable inter- and intra-rater reliability for all items of the NSA, except temperature. Significant ceiling effects were found for the NSA and the FMA.

The Brazilian version of the NSA met the criteria for agreement, internal consistency and concurrent validity. It was quick and easy to apply, and it could be used within clinical practice in neuro-rehabilitation outpatient clinics to assess sensory functions following stroke. The significant ceiling effect for the NSA did not limit its use, given that for the same patients, the FMA also showed ceiling effects.