The Use of ABILHAND-Kids in Children with Unilateral Congenital Below-Elbow Deficiencies and Acquired Amputation: An Italian Cross-Sectional Study
Gessica Della Bella,
Luigino Santecchia,
Paola Luttazi,
Giordana Mariani,
Lorenzo Pochiero,
Alessandra Lacopo,
Caterina Delia,
Marco Tofani
Affiliations
Gessica Della Bella
Management and Diagnostic Innovations & Clinical Pathways Research Area, Neurorehabilitation and Adapted Physical Activity Day Hospital, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00165 Rome, Italy
Luigino Santecchia
Orthopedic Department, Hand Surgery and Orthoplastic Service, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00165 Rome, Italy
Paola Luttazi
Management and Diagnostic Innovations & Clinical Pathways Research Area, Neurorehabilitation and Adapted Physical Activity Day Hospital, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00165 Rome, Italy
Giordana Mariani
Management and Diagnostic Innovations & Clinical Pathways Research Area, Neurorehabilitation and Adapted Physical Activity Day Hospital, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00165 Rome, Italy
Lorenzo Pochiero
Management and Diagnostic Innovations & Clinical Pathways Research Area, Neurorehabilitation and Adapted Physical Activity Day Hospital, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00165 Rome, Italy
Alessandra Lacopo
Management and Diagnostic Innovations & Clinical Pathways Research Area, Neurorehabilitation and Adapted Physical Activity Day Hospital, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00165 Rome, Italy
Caterina Delia
Management and Diagnostic Innovations & Clinical Pathways Research Area, Neurorehabilitation and Adapted Physical Activity Day Hospital, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00165 Rome, Italy
Marco Tofani
Management and Diagnostic Innovations & Clinical Pathways Research Area, Professional Development, Continuous Education and Research Service, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00165 Rome, Italy
Congenital or acquired hand differences, including unilateral below-elbow deficiencies, present complex challenges in pediatric rehabilitation. Surgical management and prosthetic provision represent a big challenge to find a good balance for guaranteeing optimal hand function. There is no specific assessment tool for measuring these aspects in the Italian context. The present study investigates the psychometric properties of the ABILHAND-Kids in children with congenital unilateral below-elbow deficiencies and acquired amputation of the upper limb. We measure internal consistency using Cronbach coefficient alpha and the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) for measuring test-retest reliability. Differences in hand function in both children with acquired or congenital diseases were also investigated. Participants to the study were 107 (49 F and 58 M) children, with a mean (SD) age of 8.88 (4.25). For test retest reliability, conducted on a sub-sample of 58 children, the ICC was 0.92, while for internal consistency, the Cronbach coefficient alpha was 0.90. We did not find statistically significant differences in scoring (p = 0.33) in the use (mean 29.25 SD 6.58) or non-use of a prosthetic device (mean 30.74 SD 7.43), while statistically significant differences were found in hand function (p < 0.01) for children who had a congenital impairment (mean 31.87 SD 6.49) and children who had an acquired amputation (mean 27.77 SD 6.60). In conclusion, the ABILHAND-Kids showed good internal consistency and reliability and can capture differences in hand function in children with both congenital and acquired hand disorders.
