Reliability and validity of the Falls Efficacy Scale-International (FES-I) in individuals with dizziness and imbalance.

HYPOTHESIS: The purpose of this research is to establish the test-retest reliability and convergent validity of the Falls Efficacy Scale-International (FES-I) in people with vestibular disorders.

BACKGROUND: Individuals with vestibular dysfunction have an increased risk of falling. The FES-I is a measure used to quantify an individual's concern of falling during different tasks.

METHODS: A cross-sectional descriptive study was used to determine the test-retest reliability and convergent validity of the FES-I. Fifty-three individuals with vestibular or balance dysfunction completed the FES-I twice during an initial evaluation by a neurotologist. Test-retest reliability was assessed using the intraclass correlation coefficient. The convergent validity was measured by correlating the FES-I with the Activities-Specific Balance Confidence (ABC) scale, Dizziness Handicap Inventory (DHI), Vestibular Activities and Participation (VAP) scale, 4-item Dynamic Gait Index (DGI-4), and measuring gait speed.

RESULTS: The FES-I demonstrated high test-retest reliability (intraclass correlation coefficient, model 3,1: 0.94; 95% confidence interval, 0.90-0.97) and had concurrent validity with other self-report and physical performance measures (correlation coefficients for the ABC, -0.84; DHI, 0.75; VAP, 0.78; gait speed, -0.55; and DGI-4, -0.55).

CONCLUSION: The FES-I is a reliable and valid tool for measuring an individual's concern of falling in a sample of people with vestibular disorders.