Cross-Cultural Adaptation and Psychometric Characteristics of the Greek Functional Gait Assessment Scale in Healthy Community-Dwelling Older Adults

Abstract

The Functional Gait Assessment (FGA) was cross-culturally adapted into Greek, according to international guidelines. The final Greek version of the scale (FGAGR) was evaluated for its reliability and was correlated with the mini-Balance Evaluation Systems Test (mini-BESTest), the Berg Balance Scale (BBS), the Timed Up and Go (TUG) test, and the Falls Efficacy Scale-International (FES-I) questionnaire, for testing the concurrent validity. The discriminant validity between individuals reporting low and those reporting high concern about falls as well as the predictive validity in identifying people with high risk of falls were assessed. The FGAGR was characterized as comprehensible in its content and orders. Psychometric testing in 24 Greek-speaking individuals (six men and eighteen women, 66 ± 7 years old) yielded excellent test-retest (ICC = 0.976) and inter-rater reliability (ICC = 0.984), but moderate internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.660). The FGAGR scale proved its concurrent and discriminant validity while a maximum cutoff point of 25, with sensitivity of 84% and specificity of 100%, was identified to be optimal for predicting risk of falls in the elderly. The good psychometric characteristics of the FGAGR confirm its applicability in assessing gait of Greek-speaking older adults.