경통 환자들을 위한 Neck Pain and Disability Scale의 신뢰도 연구

Reliability of the Neck Pain and Disability Scale in Neck Pain Patients

The self-report measure is a useful tool for evaluating self-recognized disability and difficulty in daily living activities. Although many studies and clinics used the Neck Pain and Disability Scale (NPDS) for measuring neck pain and functional impairment, there has not been much adaptation of this for use with Korean patients. The purpose of this study was to establish the reliability and validity of NPDS among Korean neck pain patients. Fifty-five subjects (32 males, 23 females) with neck pain enrolled in this study. They completed standardized self-administered questionnaires. The NPDS measures pain intensity; its interference with vocational, emotional, recreational, social, and functional aspects of living; and the presence and extent of associated factors. Reliability was determined by the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) and Cronbach's alpha for internal consistency. Validity was examined by correlating the NPDS scores to the Visual Analog Scale (VAS) score. The test-retest reliability of the translated versions of the NPDS was good ICC (2,1)=.86 (95%CI .76~.92). Cronbach's alpha value for NPDS was found to be .93, and this was statistically significant (p<.05). The criterion-related validity coefficient was .79 (p<.Oll. We conclude that the Korean version of NPDS has been shown to be a reliable and valid instrument for the assessment of neck pain. Successful linguistic and cultural translation will admit appropriate cross-cultural comparison for clinical analysis. Therefore, this study can be expected to be used as an adequate evaluation scale for neck pain related studies and treatments.