Reliability and Validity of Simple Facial Nerve Function Evaluation System for Idiopathic Facial Palsy / 中国康复理论与实践

ABSTRACT

Objective To investigate the reliability and validity of Simple Facial Grading System (SFGS) in patients with idiopathic fa-cial palsy. Methods 80 patients with idiopathic facial palsy were evaluated with the House-Brackmann (H-B) scale and SFGS before and ev-ery 2 weeks after treatment until 12 weeks or recovery. They were assessed by 2 testers before and 2 weeks after treatment. The results were analyzed and compared. Results The Cronbach'sαcoefficient was 0.93 of SFGS, and 0.74 of H-B scale. The intraclass correlation coeffi-cient (ICC) between testers was 0.84 or higher of SFGS, and 0.77 or higher of H-B scale. The Spearman's rank correlation coefficient be-tween SFGS and H-B scale was 0.73, Kappa coefficients was 0.81 for grade II, 0.74 for grade III, 0.49 for grade IV, 0.66 for grade V, and 0.92 for grade VI. The scores of SFGS and H-B scale positively correlated with the recovery time. Conclusion SFGS is a kind of evaluation for peripheral facial paralysis with satisified reliability and validity, which can be applied to evaluate the severity and outcome during acute stage.