Psychometric properties of the Arabic version of the Mini-Balance Evaluation Systems Test in patients with neurological balance disorders

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to translate and cross-culturally adapt the Mini -Bal-ance Evaluation Systems Test (Mini-BESTest) to Arabic (Mini-BESTest-Ar) and evaluate its psy-chometric properties in patients with neurolog-ical balance disorders.PATIENTS AND METHODS: The translation and adaptation followed the established guide-lines. Validity, internal consistency, test -re-test reliability, standard error of measurement (SEM), minimal detectable change (MDC95), and limits of agreement (LOA) were examined in 56 patients. The sensitivity was investigated using the receiver operating characteristic curve.RESULTS: The Mini-BESTest-Ar significantly cor-related with the Berg balance scale (BBS) (r = 0.80; p < 0.001) and dynamic gait index (DGI) (rho = 0.75; p < 0.001). All domains showed moderate to very good correlations with BBS (r = 0.62-0.81; p < 0.001) and fair to very good correlations with DGI (rho = 0.4-0.79; p < 0.05). The internal consistency and test-retest reliability of the total score and all do-mains were excellent (Cronbach's & alpha; = 0.96-0.81, ICC = 0.95-0.81, and r = 0.92-0.68). The SEM, MDC95, and MDC% for total score and domains were 1.19-0.31, 3.29-0.86 points, and 16.5%-66.8% respective-ly. The LOA revealed no systematic error. A cut-off point of 21.5/28 (Area under the curve = 0.85, sensi-tivity = 75%, specificity = 75%) was specified.CONCLUSIONS: The Mini-BESTest-Ar has ap-propriate psychometric properties supporting its usefulness for research and clinical purposes.