Translation to Serbian, Transcultural Adaptation and Validation of the Confusion Assessment Method for the Intensive Care Unit (CAM- ICU).

Aim: CAM- ICU is instrument for brief delirium screening in the intensive care unit (ICU) for ventilated and non-ventilated patients. The aim of this study was to translate, validate and evaluate the applicability of this instrument in the Serbian speaking area. Methods: Translation of the CAM-ICU was made according to International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research guidelines. In this prospective cohort study, CAM-ICU was applied to 301 adult surgical ICUs by two different raters. We tested CAM-ICU for interrater reliability by correlation between them. The scale was validated by comparison with the reference evaluation, wich was done by a psychiatrist using the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders V (DSM-V). Interrater agreement was measured using weighted kappa (k) and correlation used Spearman´s test. Results: The Spearman correlation coefficient was highly significant for rater 1 (r=0.672, p<0.001) and for rater 2 (r=0.625, p<0.001). The inter-rater reliability expressed by the kappa coefficient between rater 1 and rater 2 was highly significant (k= 0.859, 95% CI, 0.910-0.99, p<0.001). Conclusion: CAM- ICU, the first validated instrument for early detection of delirium in the Serbian speaking area, is reliable, valid and easily applied in daily clinical practice.