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Manual Ability Classification System (MACS): reliability between therapists and parents in Brazil.
Daniela B R Silva1, Carolina A R Funayama2, Luzia I Pfeifer1
1Departamento de Neurociências e Ciências do Comportamento, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil.
Brazilian Journal of Physical Therapy
|February 5, 2015
Summary
The Portuguese version of the Manual Ability Classification System (MACS) shows high reliability among therapists for assessing children with cerebral palsy (CP). Agreement between therapists and parents was fair, indicating its utility for joint use.
Area of Science:
- Rehabilitation Medicine
- Pediatric Neurology
- Clinical Assessment Tools
Background:
- The Manual Ability Classification System (MACS) is crucial for evaluating manual function in children with cerebral palsy (CP).
- Reliability of the MACS in Brazil required verification, particularly concerning its Portuguese version.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine the inter- and intra-rater reliability of the Portuguese-Brazil version of the MACS.
- To compare manual ability classifications between therapists and parents of children with CP.
Main Methods:
- 90 children (4-18 years) with CP participated in the study.
- Therapists and parents utilized the Portuguese-Brazil MACS version.
- Inter- and intra-rater reliability assessed using Kappa coefficient (k) and intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC).
Main Results:
- Therapists demonstrated almost perfect agreement (k=0.90, ICC=0.97) in MACS classifications.
- Intra-rater reliability among therapists was also high (k=0.83-0.95, ICC=0.96-0.99).
- Agreement between therapists and parents was fair (k=0.36, ICC=0.79).
Conclusions:
- The Portuguese MACS version exhibits strong reliability among therapists.
- The instrument is reliable for joint use by parents and therapists in Brazil.
