OBJETIVO: Validar a escala de congelamento da marcha (FOG-Q) para a população brasileira com doença de Parkinson (DP). MÉTODOS: Cento e sete pacientes com diagnóstico de DP foram avaliados através da versão reduzida da escala UPDRS motora (UPDRSm), HY (Hoehn e Yahr), SE (Schwab e England), escala de equilíbrio de Berg (BBS), escala internacional de medo de quedas (FES-I), escala de marcha e equilíbrio (GABS) e FOG-Q. RESULTADOS: 47,7% dos pacientes com DP foram identificados com congelamento da marcha. Este grupo obteve resultados significativamente piores nas UPDRSm, FOGQ, FES-I, BBS, GABS e no item de congelamento da UPDRS em comparação ao grupo sem o sintoma. A consistência interna da escala foi 0,86, a confiabilidade inter-examinador 0,82 e intra-examinador 0,78. Curva ROC de 0,94, sensibilidade 0,90 e especificidade 0,92. CONCLUSÃO: Nosso estudo demonstra que a versão brasileira da escala de congelamento da marcha é válida para avaliar o congelamento da marcha em pacientes com DP.

OBJECTIVE: To validate the freezing of gait questionnaire (FOG-Q) for a Brazilian population of Parkinson's disease (PD) patients. METHODS: One hundred and seven patients with a diagnosis of PD were evaluated by shortened UPDRS motor scale (sUPDRm), Hoehn and Yahr (HY), Schwab and England scale (SE), Berg balance scale (BBS), falls efficacy scale international (FES-I), gait and balance scale (GABS), and the FOG-Q Brazilian version. RESULTS: 47.7% of PD patients had FOG episodes; this group had worse scores on sUPDRSm, FOGQ, FES-I, BBS, GABS and FOG item of UPDRS when compared to the PD group without FOG. The internal consistency was 0.86, intra-rater 0.82 and inter-rater 0.78. The FOG-Q Brazilian version was significantly correlated with items related to gait and balance. The ROC curve was 0.94, the sensitivity was 0.90and specificity was 0.92. CONCLUSION: Our study suggests that the FOG-Q Brazilian version is a reliable and valid instrument for assessing FOG in PD patients.