The DASH and the QuickDASH instruments. Normative values in the general population in Norway

Area of Science:

• Orthopedics
• Rehabilitation Medicine
• Epidemiology

Background:

• The Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand (DASH) and QuickDASH questionnaires are widely used to assess upper extremity function.
• Establishing population-based normative data is crucial for accurate patient score interpretation and understanding co-morbidities.

Purpose of the Study:

• To collect population-based normative data for the DASH and QuickDASH questionnaires.
• To determine expected co-morbidity in patient groups using these scores.
• To evaluate the correlation between DASH and QuickDASH scores.

Main Methods:

• Mailed 2000 DASH and 800 QuickDASH forms to 1400 men and 1400 women, randomly selected across age decades (20-29 to over 80).
• Achieved response rates of 50% for DASH and 56% for QuickDASH.
• Analyzed returned forms to calculate mean scores by age and sex, and Spearman's correlation coefficients.

Main Results:

• Mean DASH scores increased with age, particularly in women (e.g., 36 for women over 80 vs. 22 for men over 80).
• Mean DASH and QuickDASH scores were highly similar across age decades.
• Spearman's correlation coefficient was high (0.965 overall, 0.930 for scores >= 30), but with wide confidence limits for individual agreement.

Conclusions:

• High average DASH and QuickDASH scores exist in the general population, especially the elderly, necessitating consideration during patient evaluation.
• The QuickDASH questionnaire is recommended over the full DASH due to similar information yield, shorter length, and higher completion rates.