Objectives: Children affected with spastic cerebral palsy suffering a lot of movement and balance difficulties. Balance is one of the essential variables of movement, which facilitates functional skills. The main purpose of this study was inter-rater & test-retest reliability of Pediatric Balance Scale (PBS) in children with spastic cerebral palsy.
Materials & methods: In this analytical-descriptive research performed in the rehabilitation centers, south of Tehran, Iran in 2016, psychometric method was used. For investigating the inter-rater reliability, two examiners performed the scale simultaneously with 50 children with spastic cerebral palsy. Moreover, to investigate the test-retest reliability, the scale was implemented by one examiner, in two different sessions, among 50 children with spastic cerebral palsy. There was a two-week period between the first and the second session.
Results: The inter-rater reliability (ICC=0.99), as well as the test-retest reliability (ICC=0.99), was quite high. Standard Error of Measurement (SEM) was acceptable for either test-retest or inter-rater reliability.
Conclusion: PBS is appropriate for measuring functional balance in children with spastic cerebral palsy with mild to moderate motor impairment.
Keywords: Cerebral palsy; Functional balance; Inter-rater reliability; Pediatric balance scale (PBS); Test-retest reliability.