Validation and Adaptation of the Spanish Version of the STRONGkids Nutrition Screening Tool

The use of malnutrition screening tools (MSTs) among hospitalized pediatric patients is a simple practice that may allow the identification of patients at nutrition risk. There are different tools developed in the English language, but there are limited data available on their validity when translated into other languages. The aim of this study was to construct a Spanish version (SV) of the STRONGkids MST and determine its validity and reliability in a pediatric population.

The translation and cross-cultural adaptation of the tool was performed, followed by the reliability, feasibility, and validity of the SV of the STRONGkids MST. Anthropometric assessment was used as the reference standard to evaluate the criterion validity of the MST. The length of hospital stay was used to determine predictive validity.

A total 400 children were included in the study, 90 of whom took part in the reliability phase. The interrater agreement between dietitians and nursing staff was kappa (κ) = 0.67, while the intrarater agreement among dietitians was κ = 0.82. The feasibility of the MST was adequate for clinical use. The results for criterion validity between STRONGkids and anthropometric assessment was κ = 0.56, and the criterion validity between STRONGkids and length of hospital stay was κ = 0.20. The sensitivity of the MST was 86% and the specificity was 72%.

The SV of the MST showed good reliability and feasibility. The validity is moderate, and the MST could be considered a useful resource for early detection of malnutrition risk.