| Name of the Instrument/Tool | Disabilities of Arm, Shoulder and Hand Questionnaire (DASH) |
| First Description |
Hudak PL, Amadio PC, Bombardier C. Development of an upper extremity outcome measure: the DASH (disabilities of the arm, shoulder and hand) [corrected]. The Upper Extremity Collaborative Group (UECG). Am J Ind Med 1996;29:602–8. |
| Year | 1996 |
| Domains | |
| Concept of constructs | Pain, Physical function |
| Population/Disease | Generic |
| Originally developed for | Shoulder pathology |
| Other rheumatic diseases where can be applied (only if validated) |
Osteoarthritis (OA), Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) |
| Additional population with no rheumatic diseases |
Yes distal radius facture |
| Language: Originally published in | English |
| Available in Language | Polish, Swedish, English, Spanish, Korean, Slovenian, Portuguese, Serbian, Turkish, Hungarian, Norwegian, Romanian, Russian, French, Dutch, Lithuanian, Danish, Greek, German, Finnish, Czech, Arabic, Italian, Slovak |
| REFERENCE IDENTIFICATION | |
| Author/s | Hudak P, Amadio PC, Bombardier C, and the Upper Extremity Collaborative Group |
| Title | Development of an Upper Extremity Outcome Measure: The DASH (Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder, and Hand) |
| Journal | American Journal of Industrial Medicine |
| Year | 1996 |
| Vol | 29 |
| Num | 6 |
| Pages | 602-608 |
| Country | Canada |
| Language | English |
| Other references of interest | |
| Link | https://www.scirp.org/(S(i43dyn45teexjx455qlt3d2q))/referenc … |
| Brief Description |
Kennedy CA, Beaton DE, Solway S, McConnell S, Bombardier C. Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand (DASH). The DASH and QuickDASH Outcome Measure User’s Manual, Third Edition. Toronto, Ontario: Institute for Work & Health, 2011. |
| Link | https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33609355 |
| Brief Description |
Almeida RF, Pereira ND, Ribeiro LP, Barreto RPG, Kamonseki DH, Haik MN, Camargo PR. Is the Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand (DASH) Questionnaire Adequate to Assess Individuals With Subacromial Pain Syndrome? Rasch Model and International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health. Phys Ther. 2021 May 4;101(5):pzab065 |
| Link | https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33091271/ |
| Brief Description |
Buchbinder R, Ramiro S, Huang H, Gagnier JJ, Jia Y, Whittle SL. Measures of Adult Shoulder Function. Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken). 2020 Oct;72 Suppl 10:250-293. |
| Instrument/Tool Translations References | |
| Link | http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12631494 |
| Brief Description |
Padua R, Padua L, Ceccarelli E, Romanini E, Zanoli G, Amadio PC, Campi A. Italian version of the Disability of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand (DASH) questionnaire. Cross-cultural adaptation and validation.J Hand Surg Br. 2003 Apr;28(2):179-86 |
| Link | http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24100056 |
| Brief Description |
Tongprasert S, Rapipong J, Buntragulpoontawee M. The cross-cultural adaptation of the DASH questionnaire in Thai (DASH-TH).J Hand Ther. 2014 Jan-Mar;27(1):49-54 |
| Link | http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11582907 |
| Brief Description |
Dubert T, Voche P, Dumontier C, Dinh A.The DASH questionnaire. French translation of a trans-cultural adaptation. Chir Main. 2001 Aug;20(4):294-302 |
| DEVELOPER CONTACT INFORMATION | |
| Correspondence to | http://dash.iwh.on.ca/home |
| dash@iwh.on.ca | |
| Address | DASH Outcome Measure Institute for Work & Health 481 University Avenue, Suite 800 Toronto, Ontario Canada M5G 2E9 |
| Website | --- |
| Available | Researchers and commercial organisations wishing to use the measure should contact the developers. |
| Links |
Property and copyright at the IWH (online at http://www.dash.iwh.on.ca/. Free of charge for noncommercial use; license for commercial use available at the IWH. Manual (3rd edition) online and paper copy. Researchers and commercial organisations wishing to use the measure should contact the developers. |
| DESCRIPTION OF THE INSTRUMENT | |
| Type Of Measure | Questionnaire |
| Brief Description |
DASH is self-report questionnaire designed to measure physical function and symptoms (pain, tingling/numbness, weakness, stiffness) in patients with any or several musculoskeletal disorders of the upper limb. The DASH Outcome Measure contains two optional, four-item modules intended to measure symptoms and function in athletes, performing artists and other workers whose jobs require a high degree of physical performance. These optional items are scored separately from the DASH. A shortened version called the QuickDASH (11 items) was published in 2005, and the QuickDASH-9 (nine items) was published in 2009. |
| Number of Items | 6 items about symptoms (three for pain, one for tingling/ numbness, one for weakness, and one for stiffness) and 24 about function (21 for physical function and three for social/role function). |
| Range | 0-100 (normalized score) |
| Responses options/scale |
Yes and 5= extreme difficulty (unable to do)/symptoms. |
| Developed for | Research, Clinical practice |
| PRACTICAL APPLICATION | |
| Method of administration | Self-administered |
| Recommendations to score |
The arithmetic mean of at least 27 of the 30 items (missing rule) is transformed by (mean - 1) X25 into the scale from 0-no symptoms/full function to 100-maximal symptoms/no function for the DASH total score. Five of six items are necessary for the determination of the symptoms score, and 22 of 24 items are needed for the function score. |
| Score Interpretation | A higher score indicates greater disability. |
| Cut-off points | <15 =“no problem,” 16–40=“problem, but working,” and >40 =“unable to work" |
| Cut-off points applied to | --- |
| Smallest detectable change if described | The reported MDC for the DASH ranges between 12 and 19 points. |
| Smallest detectable change applied to | --- |
| Completion time by the patient | 4 minutes |
| Scoring time by the assessor | 2 minutes |
| Training to score | Not necessary |
| Strengths | Widely used, Useful in clinical practice & research |
| Limitations | Copyrighted |
| OTHER COMMENTS | |
| Other Comments |
Item 3 ("Turn a key") was the easiest and 25 ("Pain during specific activity") the most difficult. Only item 30 ("Less capable/confident/useful") was as an erratic item. Item 15 ("Put on a sweater") showed differential functioning by age and item 11 ("Carry a heavy object") by sex. Seven items showed differential functioning related to the angular onset of pain during arm elevation. Sixty percent of the most difficult items belonged to the "Body function" domain of the ICF. |