Health Library
Outcome measures
Rehabilitation without measurement is opinion. These are the instruments we use, how they are scored, what the thresholds mean, and where the same number means different things in different conditions.
Newest
Every instrument
- Rehabilitation outcomeFunctional Independence Measure (FIM)The FIM is an 18-item scale scoring how much assistance a person needs across thirteen motor and five cognitive tasks.
- Daily livingBarthel IndexThe Barthel Index is a ten-item scale of independence in daily activities, scored from 0 to 100 in five-point increments.
- Balance and fallsBerg Balance ScaleThe Berg Balance Scale assesses static and dynamic balance through fourteen everyday tasks, each scored 0 to 4, giving a total out of 56.
- EnduranceSix-minute walk testThe six-minute walk test records the distance a person can walk in six minutes on a flat, measured course.
- Mobility and fallsTimed Up and Go (TUG)The Timed Up and Go records the seconds taken to rise from a chair, walk three metres, turn, walk back and sit down.
- SpasticityModified Ashworth ScaleThe Modified Ashworth Scale grades resistance to passive movement on a six-point scale from 0 to 4, including a 1+ grade.
- Stroke motor recoveryFugl-Meyer AssessmentThe Fugl-Meyer Assessment measures motor impairment after stroke in detail, scoring movement, coordination, reflexes, sensation, balance and joint range separately for the upper and lower limb.
- WalkingFunctional Ambulation Category (FAC)The Functional Ambulation Category classifies walking ability on six levels, from non-ambulatory to independent on all surfaces including stairs.
- Spinal cord injuryASIA Impairment ScaleThe ASIA Impairment Scale is the international standard for classifying the level and completeness of a spinal cord injury, graded A through E.
- CognitionMontreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA)The MoCA is a ten-minute screening test of attention, memory, language, visuospatial and executive function, scored out of 30.
- LymphoedemaLimb volume measurementLimb volume is measured by taking circumferences at fixed intervals along the limb and converting them to volume using the truncated cone formula.
- Trunk controlTrunk Control TestThe Trunk Control Test scores four items — rolling to each side, sitting up from lying and balancing in sitting — out of 100.
- Paediatric functionGross Motor Function Classification System (GMFCS)The Gross Motor Function Classification System describes how a child with cerebral palsy moves, in five levels from walking without limitation to being transported in a wheelchair.
