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Can owners assess outcome following treatment of canine cruciate ligament deficiency?
Author(s) -
Innes J. F.,
Barr A. R. S.
Publication year - 1998
Publication title -
journal of small animal practice
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.7
H-Index - 67
eISSN - 1748-5827
pISSN - 0022-4510
DOI - 10.1111/j.1748-5827.1998.tb03735.x
Subject(s) - medicine , cruciate ligament , physical therapy , reliability (semiconductor) , disease , anterior cruciate ligament , surgery , power (physics) , physics , quantum mechanics
Forty‐seven owners of 48 dogs surgically treated for cranial cruciate ligament deficiency were asked to assess the outcome of treatment at one year postsurgery. A standard visual analogue scale assessment tool was used in all cases and owners were asked to score a variety of generic and disease‐specific features. The reliability and responsiveness of the assessment tool were estimated and found to be acceptable; generic features, such as ‘level of disability’, showed the greatest reliability and responsiveness. The results of assessments by owners were compared to assessments by a veterinary surgeon but few significant correlations were found. Assessments by owners appear to be a useful outcome measure in this disease but are unlikely to be directly comparable to assessments by a veterinary surgeon.