OUTCOME MEASURE RESPONSIVENESS IN NEUROLOGICAL REHABILITATION: A COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW
Abstract
Neurological physiotherapy aims to improve functional ability, independence, and quality of life in individuals with neurological disorders through targeted rehabilitation interventions. Accurate assessment of treatment outcomes is fundamental to evidence-based practice, and among the key psychometric properties of outcome measures-validity, reliability, and responsiveness-responsiveness plays a critical role in detecting true and meaningful change over time. This review examines the concept of responsiveness, its distinction from validity and reliability, and its importance in neurological physiotherapy. Distribution-based and anchor-based methods used to assess responsiveness, including effect size, standardized response mean, minimal detectable change (MDC), and minimal clinically important difference (MCID), are discussed in detail. The responsiveness of commonly used outcome measures across major neurological conditions such as stroke, Parkinson’s disease, spinal cord injury, and multiple sclerosis is reviewed. Factors influencing responsiveness, including disease stage, intervention intensity, measurement intervals, and patient-related and contextual variables, are highlighted. The review further explores clinical implications, challenges, and future directions, emphasizing the need for responsive, patient-centered, and technology-enhanced outcome measures to optimize clinical decision-making and rehabilitation outcomes.
Keywords:
Neurological physiotherapy, Minimal clinically important difference (MCID), Minimal detectable change (MDC), Rehabilitation assessment, Patient-centered outcomesDOI
https://doi.org/10.70604/ijzels.v3i1.143References
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