Which exertion scale is recommended to be used in the evaluation of children with neuromuscular diseases: OMNI or BORG?

• Grant number: 23/09029-3
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: August 01, 2023
• End date: January 31, 2024
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy
• Principal Investigator: Ana Cláudia Mattiello-Sverzut
• Grantee: Clara Corsete Tonoli
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto (FMRP). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Ribeirão Preto , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 17/17596-4 - Aerobic capacity, muscle strength and power of children and adolescents with chronic disease: characterization and treatment, AP.TEM

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic interrupted the data collection for a project that aimed to carry out construct validation and verify the inter-examiner reproducibility of the OMNI scale in patients with neuromuscular diseases. Up until then, data had been collected from 17 patients (CMT=13, DMD=3 and Myopathies=1) for the application of the final version of the OMNI scale, and the results obtained were positive. However, clinical-scientific experiences and COSMIN reinforce the need to evaluate a sample involving at least 30 patients to guarantee the quality of the instrument used. Therefore, neuromuscular diseases samples must be increased to at least 20 patients, which will be treated separately, such as sensorimotor neuropathy and myopathies. The evaluations will continue to be carried out at the Rehabilitation Center (CER) of the Hospital das Clínicas of the Faculty of Medicine of the University of São Paulo (HCFMRP-USP) and at the FT-RARA - Scientific Research Laboratory (FMRP-USP). Participants' body mass, height and body composition will be measured. It is intended to evaluate the Six Minute Walk Test (6MWT) in a sample of 20 patients with Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease and 20 patients with myopathies. During the 6MWT, the values of heart rate and distance covered, and the score of the OMNI and Borg scales of both groups will be obtained. The values of the OMNI and Borg scale will be correlated, in the analysis, a very low correlation d.0.20 will be considered; low 0.21-0.40; moderate 0.41-0.60; high 0.61-0.80; very high 0.81 to 1.0. The reliability of the OMNI will be estimated through inter-examiner reproducibility using the weighted Kappa concordance classification, in which values < 0 indicate poor concordance; 0.1-0.2= weak agreement; 0.21-0.4 = light agreement; 0.41 to 0.60 =moderate agreement; 0.61 to 0.80=substantial agreement and 0.81-0.99=almost perfect agreement. All analyzes will be performed using SPSS® software (version 23), a p<0.05 will be considered significant.