ABILHAND-kids young CP: a measure of manual ability in young children with cerebral palsy aged 2 to 7

Objective: Hand dysfunction is one of the main factors contributing to daily activity limitations in children with cerebral palsy (CP). As a latent -variable, manual ability is not easily measurable, especially in young children. This study aimed to develop ABILHAND-Kids Young CP, a Rasch-built manual ability measure in young children with CP. Design: Prospective study/questionnaire develop-ment. Subjects/Patients: 107 CP children aged 2 to 7 (59% unilateral CP). Methods: Responses of children’s parents to an 80-item experimental questionnaire were analyzed using RUMM2020 software to select items presenting the best psychometric qualities. Results: ABILHAND-Kids Young CP includes 17 items with well-discriminated response categories and defines a valid, unidimensional, and linear scale. It presents high measurement precision (R = 0.94) and is invariant allowing the measurement of young children with CP whatever their age, gender, clinical form, and Manual Ability Classification System (MACS) levels. Its measures are significantly related to age (r = 0.22), school education, clinical form, MACS (r = –0.63) and Pediatric Evaluation of Disability Inventory (r = 0.74) (all p < 0.001, except age at p = 0.023). Conclusion: ABILHAND-Kids Young CP is a unidimensional and linear scale specifically developed to measure manual ability in young children with CP. Its psychometric properties show promising potential in monitoring children’s evolution related to neurorehabilitation.