Objective: Translation of the Spinal Cord Injury Falls Concern Scale (SCI-FCS); validation and investigation of psychometric properties.
Design: Translation, adaptation and validation study.
Subjects/patients: Eighty-seven wheelchair users with chronic SCI attending follow-up at Rehab Station Stockholm/Spinalis, Sweden.
Methods: The SCI-FCS was translated to Swedish and culturally adapted according to guidelines. Construct validity was examined with the Mann-Whitney U-test, and psychometric properties with factor and Rasch analysis.
Results: Participants generally reported low levels of concerns about falling. Participants with higher SCI-FCS scores also reported fear of falling, had been injured for a shorter time, reported symptoms of depression, anxiety and fatigue, and were unable to get up from the ground independently. Falls with or without injury the previous year, age, level of injury, sex and sitting balance did not differentiate the level of SCI-FCS score. The median SCI-FCS score was 21 (range 16-64). Cronbachs alpha (0.95), factor and Rasch analysis showed similar results of the Swedish as of the original version.
Conclusion: The Swedish SCI-FCS showed high internal consistency and similar measurement properties and structure as the original version. It showed discriminant ability for fear of falling, time since injury, symptoms of depression or anxiety, fatigue and ability to get up from the ground but not for age, gender or falls. Persons with shorter time since injury, psychological concerns, fatigue and decreased mobility were more concerned about falling. In a clinical setting, the SCI-FCS might help identifying issues to address to reduce the concerns about falling.