Measurement Characteristics and Clinical Utility of the Pediatric Evaluation of Disability Inventory in Children With Cerebral Palsy

Cerebral palsy (CP) is a leading cause of childhood physical disabilities,¹ affecting up to 2.5 per 1000 live births in the developed world² and affecting functioning throughout the life span.¹ CP primarily affects an individual’s motor abilities and secondarily affects sensation, perception, cognition, communication, and behavior.¹ The Pediatric Evaluation of Disability Inventory (PEDI) is one of the most commonly used measures of functioning in children with CP.² The PEDI assesses functional status and occupational performance of children with disabilities in the domains of self-care, mobility, and social function.³ The PEDI measures these domains in 3 separate scales including 197 functional skills items, 20 caregiver assistance items, and 20 modification items.³ The 3 scales include functional skills, needed caregiver assistance, and needed modifications.³ The items in the PEDI are mapped to International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health for Children and Youth version codes to facilitate use with other assessments mapped to International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health for Children and Youth codes.² In addition, the PEDI has been validated in many clinical populations and languages⁴ and demonstrates excellent validity and reliability for use among children living with CP.^{3.,  4.,  5.,  6.,  7.,  8.} Furthermore, large effect sizes have been found within the self-care and mobility domains of both the functional skills and caregiver assistance scales, with larger effect sizes found in younger age groups.⁵ The scoring manual and scoring forms are available for purchase from Pearson Education, Inc and together cost approximately $150.