Validation of the OPRO-M short forms: Reliable tools for assessing mobility in lower limb orthosis users

Professor Brian Hafner, PhD, and his team at the University of Washington Center for Outcomes Research in Rehabilitation (UWCORR) conducted a study to validate the Orthotic Patient-Reported Outcomes - Mobility (OPRO-M) short forms – standardized surveys developed by the investigators to assess perceived mobility in users of lower limb orthoses (LLOs). The researchers evaluated the construct validity and test-retest reliability of the 12- and 20-item OPRO-M short forms in a prospective validation study with 104 LLO users. The OPRO-M short forms showed strong correlations with both self-report and performance-based mobility instruments, effectively distinguished between most mobility levels, and demonstrated excellent reliability and low measurement error. These findings support the OPRO-M short forms as valid, reliable, and population-specific tools for measuring mobility in LLO users.

The research team included Assistant Professor Geoffrey Balkman, PhD, CPO; Research Scientist Alyssa Bamer, MPH; Research Coordinator Rana Salem, MS; Affiliate Associate Professor Sara Morgan, PhD, CPO, and collaborators Phil Stevens, MEd, CPO, and Eric Weber, CPO from the Hanger Institute for Clinical Research and Education. This study is online now in the National Library of Medicine.