Translation and adaptation of the Disability Assessment for Dementia scale in the Spanish population.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Functional assessment is especially relevant in patients with cognitive impairment (CI). The Disability Assessment for Dementia (DAD) scale assesses functional ability and its use is becoming increasingly popular. This study aims to perform the translation and cultural adaptation of the DAD scale in order to create a Spanish version: DAD-E.

PATIENTS AND METHOD: A double translation/back-translation process was developed, as well as a pilot study with 14 caregivers of patients with CI, and 3 review meetings to achieve general agreement.

RESULTS: The DAD-E includes the 40 original items. Four response options and 8 scores were added in order to detect functional disability induced by CI independently of other possible causes. More detailed instructions for administration and scoring of the scale have been provided in order to improve the reliability of the content.

CONCLUSIONS: The DAD-E was shown to be a cultural and linguistic adaptation equivalent of the original scale, which allows it to be applied to the Spanish population. It may be a useful instrument in clinical practice since it provides a more accurate assessment of functional disability due to cognitive impairment.