Validation of the pediatric Radboud Dysarthria Assessment

Marieke Ruessink, Lenie van den Engel-Hoek, Marjo van Gerven, Bea Spek, Bert de Swart, Johanna Kalf

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2 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

PURPOSE: The Radboud Dysarthria Assessment (RDA) was published in 2014. Adaptation into a pediatric version (p-RDA) was required because of relevant differences between children and adults. The purpose of this study was to assess the feasibility of the p-RDA and to test intra-rater and inter-rater reliability as well as the validity of the two severity scales (function and activity level). METHODS: Video recordings were made of 35 participants with (suspected) dysarthria (age 4 to 17 years) while being assessed using the p-RDA. Intra-rater reliability was assessed by one, and inter-rater reliability by two experiments using the Intraclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC). Validity of the severity scales was tested by correlating the consensus scores with the independently rated scores on four communication scales, three mobility scales, and one self-care scale using Spearman correlation coefficients (rs). RESULTS: The assessment was applicable for 89% of the tested sample, with good intra-rater and inter-rater reliability (ICC = 0.88-0.98 and 0.83-0.93). The p-RDA severity scales (function and activity level) correlated from substantially to strongly with the communication scales (rs = 0.69-0.82 and 0.77-0.92) and self-care scale (rs = 0.76-0.71) and correlated substantially with the mobility scales (rs = 0.49-0.60). CONCLUSION: The feasibility, reliability and validity of the p-RDA are sufficient for clinical use.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)299-310
Number of pages12
JournalJournal of pediatric rehabilitation medicine
Volume15
Issue number2
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2022

Keywords

  • Childhood dysarthria
  • dysarthria assessment
  • reliability
  • severity
  • validity

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