Investigation of the reliability and validity of the Turkish version of the Sitting Balance Scale in individuals with stroke

ObjectiveThe purpose of the study was to investigate the reliability and validity of the Turkish version of the Sitting Balance Scale (SBS-T).MethodsSBS-T was tested with 60 individuals with stroke. Test-retest reliability was calculated with the Intraclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC). The Trunk Impairment Scale (TIS), Function in Sitting Test (FIST), The Berg Balance Scale (BBS), and Barthel Index (BI) were used to test the validity of SBS-T. The internal consistency of the SBS-T items was calculated with the Cronbach Alpha Analysis. Factor analysis and hypothesis testing were used for construct validity. Ceiling and floor effects were calculated for reliability.ResultsThe intra-observer ICC was found to be 0.970 and the inter-observer ICC value was 0.999. The Cronbach's Alpha Coefficient was detected to be 0.955. A high correlation was detected between SBS-T and TIS, BBS, FIST, and BI (r = 0.861, p = 0.001; r = 0.849, p = 0.001; r = 0.906, p = 0.001; r = 0.848, p = 0.001, respectively).ConclusionAs a result of the factor analysis, it was found that the scale was determined by one single factor. No ceiling and floor effects were detected. The Turkish version of the SBS is a valid and reliable scale for predicting mobility and functionality in stroke for use in clinical and scientific studies.ClinicalTrials.gov identifierNCT04801927.