Comparison of the Psychometric Characteristics of the Functional Independence Measure, 5 Item Barthel Index, and 10 Item Barthel Index in Patients with Stroke

Objectives: The 5-item short form Barthel Index (BI-5) has been shown to be a potentially useful measure of activities of daily living (ADL). The purpose of this study was to compare the reliability, validity and responsiveness of the motor subscale of the Functional Independence Measure (FIMTM ), the original 10-item BI, and the BI-5 in stroke inpatients receiving rehabilitation. Methods: A total of 118 stroke inpatients at a rehabilitation unit participated in the study. The patients were tested using the FIM motor subscale and original BI at admission to the rehabilitation ward and before discharge from the hospital. The distribution, internal consistency, concurrent validity, and responsiveness of each measure were examined. Results: The BI and FIM motor subscale showed acceptable distribution, high internal consistency ( alpha coefficient& sup3;0.84), high concurrent validity (Spearman rho&sup3 ;0.92, intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) ³ 0.83) and high responsiveness (standardized response mean ³1.2, p