Assessing the Validity and Reliability of the Arabic Version of the Locomotor Capabilities Index in Adults with Lower Limb Amputation: Cross-cultural Adaptation Study

Background: Amputations can significantly negatively impact an individual’s economic status, psychological health, and social life. The Locomotor Capabilities Index (LCI) measures how well people with lower-limb amputation can use prostheses to carry out activities. The validity and reliability of the Arabic version of the LCI were assessed in this study. Methods: The English Locomotor Capabilities Index had been translated forward and backward for cross-cultural adaptation to Arabic (LCI). The subsequent Arabic (SAUDI) LCI was then administered to fifty-seven patients with amputation; thirteen of them were women with a mean age of 53 years (ranging from 29 to 71), while forty-four were men with a mean age of 55 years (ranging between 20 and 85 years). All patients were trained in Al Nour Rehabilitation training centre – in Mecca -KSA. The validity and reliability of the Arabic LCI were evaluated through several measures. In two different subgroups of 20 and 30 amputation patients, the Arabic LCI was compared to the Time Up-and-Go test (TUG) and the Index of EQ-5D Health Utility to assess its structural validity. Scores from various age groups were compared to determine the discrimination value. Thirty individuals with amputations underwent test-retest reliability (7–14 day) evaluations. Results: The Arabic LCI demonstrated good converging structure validity, exhibiting a strong correlation with TUG (r = 0.79 & 95%CI - 0.90- 0.60) and EQ-5D (r= 0.81,95%CI 0.61- 0.92), as well as discriminatory effect, with mean scores for older amputees significantly lower than for younger amputees (p < 0.001)) and high internal consistency (Cronbach alpha 0.93 ) (CI 95 % 0.91-0.94). Test-retest reliability for unilateral amputees had an intraclass correlation coefficient of 0.93 (95 % CI 0.83-0.92). 17.5 % of the cases involved the ceiling effect. The ceiling effect occurred in 17.5% of the cases. Conclusion: The Arabic version of the LCI has shown strong internal consistency and validity in adults with amputation.