Brazilian Portuguese version of the revised upper-limb module: cross-cultural adaptation and validation.

Background:  With the emergence of new therapies for spinal muscular atrophy linked to chromosome 5q (SMA-5q), capturing motor function changes in the upper limbs (ULs) become crucial for assessing treatment efficacy and monitoring changes in the disease. The translation and cultural adaptation of the revised upper-limb module (RULM) into Brazilian Portuguese will enable implementation in clinical settings and facilitate the conduction of national studies.

Objective:  To translate, cross-culturally adapt, and validate the RULM to Brazilian Portuguese.

Methods:  The study was conducted in two phases: translation and cross-cultural adaptation, and the reliability assessment. Both phases followed recommendations from international guidelines. The analysis of the psychometric properties was performed with 21 individuals with SMA-5q, all of whom were at least 30-months-old and capable of sitting independently. Statistical analyses were performed using Cohen's Kappa analysis (K) and the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC).

Results:  The interrater agreement was considered excellent for items A to T (K > 0.81) and good (0.61-0.80) for items G and M. The reliability analysis showed an ICC of 0.998, indicating an extremely satisfactory level.

Conclusion:  The Brazilian Portuguese version of the RULM has been shown to be valid and reliable for the assessment of SMA-5q individuals older than 2 years of age who could sit.