Interobserver agreement in the assessment of muscle strength and functional abilities in Guillain‐Barré syndrome

Abstract In studies of Guillain‐Barré syndrome, functional deficit is usually assessed according to a functional scale consisting of several categories. The level of interobserver agreement in this scoring method is not known; furthermore, this method seems to be insensitive when applied to bedridden and artificially ventilated patients. We have developed an additional score (MRC‐sumscore), reflecting muscle strength in general. Both scoring methods, tested in Guillain‐Barré patients, have an almost perfect interobserver agreement. For the functional score k = 0.85, and for the MRC‐sumscore r 2 = 0.96. The MRC‐sumscore is easily assessed and more sensitive than the functional score when patients are bedridden or artificially ventilated.