[Development and content validation of a questionnaire for functional movement disorders].

Area of Science:

• Neurology
• Psychiatry
• Physical Therapy

Background:

• Functional movement disorders (FMDs) are complex conditions historically linked to emotional distress.
• Emerging neurophysiological evidence supports the integration of specialized physiotherapy with psychotherapy for FMDs.
• A significant gap exists in disease-specific outcome measures for assessing patient-relevant aspects of FMDs.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a novel questionnaire for assessing subjective complaints in functional movement disorders.
• To create a patient-centered instrument for quantifying the impact of FMDs.

Main Methods:

• A multistage development process involving expert evaluation and patient feedback.
• Content validation of questionnaire items and response categories.
• Iterative refinement based on expert and patient assessments.

Main Results:

• The developed questionnaire demonstrates good content-related validity.
• It provides the first quantifiable measure of subjective complaints and implications in FMDs.
• The instrument was refined through expert and patient input.

Conclusions:

• The new questionnaire offers a valuable tool for assessing patient-reported outcomes in functional movement disorders.
• This instrument facilitates a more comprehensive understanding and quantification of FMDs.
• Future multicenter studies will examine the psychometric properties of this validated measure.