Item reliability of the Milani-Comparetti Motor Development Screening Test

Area of Science:

• Pediatric physical therapy
• Developmental pediatrics
• Motor development assessment

Background:

• Reliability of developmental screening tools is crucial for accurate clinical assessment.
• The Milani-Comparetti Motor Development Screening Test is used to evaluate motor skills in young children.
• Establishing the psychometric properties of screening tests ensures their validity and utility.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the interobserver and test-retest reliability of the Milani-Comparetti Motor Development Screening Test.
• To determine the consistency of scoring by different examiners and over time.
• To provide evidence for the clinical utility of this motor development screening tool.

Main Methods:

• Sixty healthy children aged 1-16 months were videotaped during the Milani-Comparetti test administration.
• Four pediatric physical therapists independently scored the videotaped responses to assess interobserver reliability.
• Forty-three children were retested within one week to evaluate test-retest reliability using percentage agreement and Kappa statistics.

Main Results:

• Interobserver agreement ranged from 79% to 98%, with significant G statistics for all items.
• Test-retest agreement ranged from 80% to 100%.
• Excellent test-retest reliability (Kappa > 0.75) was found for 82% of items, with good reliability for the rest.

Conclusions:

• The Milani-Comparetti Motor Development Screening Test demonstrates acceptable interobserver and test-retest reliability for the assessed age group.
• The findings support the use of the test as a reliable screening tool for motor development.
• Further research is recommended to evaluate its predictive and follow-up capabilities in at-risk populations.