Motor assessment scale in Norway: Translation and inter-rater reliability

Abstract

The aim of the study was to determine the inter-rater reliability of the translated Norwegian version of the Motor Assessment Scale (MAS). Eighteen physiotherapists assessed the functional ability of five video-recorded stroke patients according to the MAS; 11 experienced and seven less-experienced physiotherapists. The scores of the three therapists performing the assessment on the video were used as the criterion ratings. The percentage of exact agreement between the physiotherapists and the criterion raters was good to excellent, showing mean values in the range from 57% to 81% for the five patients. The agreement between the physiotherapists showed good to excellent values for the different MAS items (ICC range 0.72–1.00), and poor to excellent values for the different patients (ICC range: 0.35–0.99). No differences were detected between the scorings of the experienced and inexperienced physiotherapists. The discrepancy prevailed in situations of evaluating qualitative aspects of function. The Norwegian version of the MAS has proved to be reliable across different subjects. The application of MAS may be of clinical importance for physiotherapists to document their progress and outcome, and for the motivation of the patients.