Construct validity of the Brazilian QuickDASH for assessing work-related upper-limb musculoskeletal disorders.

Abstract

Background: Work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WRMD) may be associated with various individual, physical, biomechanical, or psychosocial/organisational risk factors. Self-report questionnaires have increasingly been used to assess patients' perceptions of injury impact. QuickDASH is a widely used outcome measurement questionnaire but is seldom applied to WRMD.

Objective: To evaluate the construct validity of the Brazilian version of the QuickDASH (QD-Br) in patients with WRMD affecting the upper limbs, hypothesising a moderate correlation with fatigue, ergonomic, and functional questionnaires.

Methods: Workers of a tertiary hospital, such as healthcare professionals and support staff employees with WRMD in the upper limbs and neck were included. The outcome measures were QD-Br, the Numerical Pain Scale (NPS), Isometric Handgrip Strength (GS), Isokinetic Force of Bilateral Shoulder Elevation in the Scapular Plane (ISOAbd), Functional Impairment Test - Hand and Neck/Shoulder/Arm (FIT-HaNSA), and: Patient-Specific Functional Scale (PSFS-Br), Neck Disability Index (NDI-Br), Work Ability Index (WAI-Br), Need for Recovery Scale (NFR-Br), and Quick Exposure Checklist (QEC-Br). Spearman's Correlation Coefficient (ρ) was calculated to determine the direction and strength of associations.

Results: The sample was 70% female, 63% reporting chronic symptoms. The shoulder was the joint most frequently reported. QD-Br showed moderate positive correlations with NDI-Br and NPS and moderate but negative correlations with WAI-Br and PSFS-Br. It presented weak and positive correlations with NFR-Br, weak and negative correlations with GS, ISOAbd, and FIT-HaNSA, and no correlation with QEC-Br.

Conclusion: QD-Br demonstrated evidence of construct validity for assessing workers with upper limb complaints, effectively reflecting their dysfunctions and symptoms.