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.