Development of the Portuguese Version of the Modified Japanese Orthopaedic Association Score: Cross-Cultural Adaptation, Reliability, Validity, and Responsiveness.

BACKGROUND: Spondylotic cervical myelopathy (SCM) is a common cause of spinal-related disability in elderly patients. The assessment of this disability is a challenging task and depends on the subjective evaluation of the investigator. As a widespread-used scale, the modified version of the Japanese Orthopaedic Association score (mJOA) should be translated and culturally adapted in the Brazilian Portuguese language (i.e., mJOA-Br) to provide its clinical and research use. This study aimed to perform translation, transcultural adaptation, and validation of the mJOA into Brazilian Portuguese. METHODS: Following the transcultural adaptation model described by Guillemin et al., the scale as translated into Brazilian Portuguese and back-translated to English. Afterwards, questionnaires were applied in consecutive patients with SCM and compared with a control group (without SCM). The final scale was compared with the Brazilian version of Neck Disability Index for validation. RESULTS: Sixty patients were submitted to the translated version of mJOA. There was a strong correlation between mJOA-Br scores and Neck Disability Index scores to evaluate SCM symptoms (R = -0.75). CONCLUSIONS: mJOA-Br was considered a valid and reliable tool to evaluate patients with SCM.