Abstract
Study design:
A cross-sectional study.
Objectives:
To investigate reliability, discriminative ability and concurrent validity of three functional tests (including the 10-meter walk test (10MWT), timed up and go test (TUGT) and five times sit-to-stand test (FTSST)) using the Functional Independence Measure Locomotor (FIM-L) scores as a standard criterion.
Setting:
A tertiary rehabilitation center, Thailand.
Methods:
Subjects were 66 patients with spinal cord injury (SCI), who were able to walk at least 50 m unassisted with or without a walking device (FIM-L scores 6–7). They were tested for functional ability using the 10MWT, TUGT and FTSST. Sixteen subjects also assessed the ability using three assessors to evaluate the inter-tester reliability of the tools.
Results:
The three functional tests demonstrated excellent inter-tester reliability (intraclass correlation coefficient (3,3)=0.997–1.00) and could clearly distinguish between subjects who walked with and without a walking device. In addition, the tests showed significant correlation with walking categories or FIM-L scores (rpb=0.778, −0.692 and −0.595 for the 10MWT, TUGT and FTSST, respectively, P<0.001).
Conclusion:
The findings support reliability and validity of the 10MWT, TUGT and FTSST to assess levels of independences in ambulatory subjects with SCI.
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Acknowledgements
This study was supported by funding from the Thailand Research Fund (TRF), the Improvement of Physical Performance and Quality of Life (IPQ) Research Group and Khon Kaen University, Thailand. We also thank Ian Thomas for his contribution in manuscript preparation.
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Poncumhak, P., Saengsuwan, J., Kamruecha, W. et al. Reliability and validity of three functional tests in ambulatory patients with spinal cord injury. Spinal Cord 51, 214–217 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1038/sc.2012.126
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/sc.2012.126
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