Scaling of the revised Oswestry low back pain questionnaire

Objective: To evaluate the measurement properties of the Revised Oswestry Disability Questionnaire (RODQ) by using rating scale analyses. Design: Calibration of item responses by using a data set. Setting: Four outpatient therapy clinics in the northeastern United States. Patients: Convenience sample of 95 community-dwelling adults exhibiting mild to severe low back pain-related disability (LBP-D). Interventions: Not applicable. Main Outcome Measure: The RODQ. Results: Several Rasch analyses were performed, with 1 item deleted and 2 response categories collapsed, creating a better test without increased error. A schema for item administration and evaluation was also developed. Conclusions: By using the abbreviated scale, suggested item order, and predicted responses, abbreviated versions of the instrument can be applied to measure LBP-D more efficiently.