Design and Validation of a Web-Based Exploratory Survey Investigating Qualified Professionals and Volunteers Using 3D Printing for Upper Limb Prosthetics: A Methodological Paper

Background: 3D printing (3DP) workflow has made its entry in the upper limb prostheses (ULP) manufacturing process. Although it represents a valuable change in clinical practice, its implementation is not ubiquitous. Additional data are required to establish recommendations and unanimously accepted guidelines to facilitate clinical application. Objectives: Our study aimed to develop and validate a web-based multilingual survey investigating the sociodemographic and technical profiles and expertise of professionals and volunteers using 3DP for manufacturing ULP. Methods: We followed a multi-stage development and validation process, including item generation, experts’ review, cognitive testing and pre-testing among the population of interest (POI). Validity evidence was accumulated at each stage, with Content Validity and Face Validity measurements. The survey was available in French, English and Spanish and distributed through the REDCAP web-based platform. Results: The validated questionnaire comprised fifty-two primary questions, organized in nine sections. Experts’ evaluations demonstrated appropriate topic coverage and a high degree of relevance throughout the survey: most single item Content Validity Indexes (CVI) ranged from 0.87 to 1 and Average CVIs for survey sections reached between 0.86 to 1. The pre-test among the POI included 42 participants and led to limited questionnaire revisions. The final version of the survey was approved unanimously by all experts. Conclusions: The newly developed web-based survey demonstrated good evidence for validity. This instrument is an acceptable tool to investigate stakeholders using 3DP for manufacturing ULP and to further establish guidelines.