Reliability and validity of the Finnish version of the Visual Analogue Scale Foot and Ankle (VAS-FA)

Abstract

Background There have previously been no validated foot and ankle-specific patient-reported outcome measures in Finnish.

Methods The Visual Analogue Scale Foot and Ankle (VAS-FA) was translated and adapted into Finnish. Thereafter, 165 patients who had undergone foot and ankle surgery completed a questionnaire set on two separate occasions. Analyses included testing of floor-ceiling effect, internal consistency, reproducibility, and validity.

Results Minor linguistic differences emerged during the translation. Some structural adjustments were made. The mean (SD) total VAS-FA score was 74 (23). In the three subscales, maximum scores were noted in 2–5% of the responses, and internal consistency ranged from 0.81 to 0.94. Reproducibility was excellent (ICC, 0.97). The total VAS-FA score correlated significantly with the Lower Extremity Functional Scale (r = 0.84) and the 15D Mobility dimension (r = 0.79). The VAS-FA loaded on two factors (pain/movement and problems/limitations).

Conclusions The Finnish version of the VAS-FA has high reliability and strong validity.