Objective: To evaluate the reliability, validity, and sensitivity of a Swedish version of the Arthritis Impact Measurement Scales (AIMS2) in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA).
Methods: Reliability was assessed by a test-retest procedure with a 3-week interval and Cronbach's coefficient of internal consistency. Convergent validity was evaluated by correlation coefficients with the Health Assessment Questionnaire (HAQ), Mood Adjective Checklist (MACL), and disease activity variables. The sensitivity to change was assessed in 40 patients treated with disease modifying antirheumatic drugs, 24 mo after the start of the study.
Results: Significant differences were found for the Walking and Bending, Arthritis Pain, and Work scales (p < 0.05) in the test-retest reliability study. Internal consistency coefficients for the AIMS2 scales were 0.68-0.91. Convergent validity was established by significant correlations between the different scales in AIMS2 and the HAQ, MACL, and disease activity variables. Sensitivity to change was observed in 5 of 11 scales in AIMS2.
Conclusion: After modifying some reliability problems due to a more differentiated scale and cultural differences between the Swedish and American patients with RA, the reliability, validity, and sensitivity to change of AIMS2 were found satisfactory.