scholarly journals Agreement in Walking Speed Measured Using Four Different Outcome Measures: 6-Meter Walk Test, 10-Meter Walk Test, 2-Minute Walk Test, and 6-Minute Walk Test

Author(s):  
James Roush ◽  
John Heick ◽  
Tanner Hawk ◽  
Dillon Eurek ◽  
Austin Wallis ◽  
...  

Background: Walking speed is considered the sixth vital sign because it is a valid, reliable, and sensitive measure for assessing functional status in various populations. Purpose: The current study assessed agreement in walking speed using the 6-meter walk test, (6MWT) 10-meter walk test (10MWT), 2-minute walk test (2minWT), and 6-minute walk test (6minWT). We also determined differences in walking speed. Methods: Seventy-three healthy adults (44 females, 29 males; mean [SD] age=31.36 [10.33] years) participated. Lafayette Electronic timing devices measured walking speed for the 6MWT and 10MWT. Measuring wheels and stopwatches measured walking distance and speed for the 2minWT and 6minWT. Participants completed 1 trial, and all tests were administered simultaneously. Results: The intraclass correlation coefficient (2, 4) for the different measures of walking speed was excellent at 0.90 (95% confidence intervals, 0.86-0.93). The correlation was 0.95 between 6MWT and 10MWT, 0.94 between 2minWT and 6minWT, 0.67 between 6MWT and 2minWT, 0.63 between 10MWT and 2minWT, and 0.59 between 10MWT and 6minWT (all p < 0.05). No differences in walking speed were found between the four walking tests. Conclusion: Administration of any of the four walking tests provided reliable measurement of walking speed.

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Franchino Porciuncula ◽  
Teresa C. Baker ◽  
Dheepak Arumukhom Revi ◽  
Jaehyun Bae ◽  
Regina Sloutsky ◽  
...  

Background: Soft robotic exosuits can facilitate immediate increases in short- and long-distance walking speeds in people with post-stroke hemiparesis. We sought to assess the feasibility and rehabilitative potential of applying propulsion-augmenting exosuits as part of an individualized and progressive training program to retrain faster walking and the underlying propulsive strategy.Methods: A 54-yr old male with chronic hemiparesis completed five daily sessions of Robotic Exosuit Augmented Locomotion (REAL) gait training. REAL training consists of high-intensity, task-specific, and progressively challenging walking practice augmented by a soft robotic exosuit and is designed to facilitate faster walking by way of increased paretic propulsion. Repeated baseline assessments of comfortable walking speed over a 2-year period provided a stable baseline from which the effects of REAL training could be elucidated. Additional outcomes included paretic propulsion, maximum walking speed, and 6-minute walk test distance.Results: Comfortable walking speed was stable at 0.96 m/s prior to training and increased by 0.30 m/s after training. Clinically meaningful increases in maximum walking speed (Δ: 0.30 m/s) and 6-minute walk test distance (Δ: 59 m) were similarly observed. Improvements in paretic peak propulsion (Δ: 2.80 %BW), propulsive power (Δ: 0.41 W/kg), and trailing limb angle (Δ: 6.2 degrees) were observed at comfortable walking speed (p's &lt; 0.05). Likewise, improvements in paretic peak propulsion (Δ: 4.63 %BW) and trailing limb angle (Δ: 4.30 degrees) were observed at maximum walking speed (p's &lt; 0.05).Conclusions: The REAL training program is feasible to implement after stroke and capable of facilitating rapid and meaningful improvements in paretic propulsion, walking speed, and walking distance.


2000 ◽  
Vol 80 (1) ◽  
pp. 8-16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary B King ◽  
James O Judge ◽  
Robert Whipple ◽  
Leslie Wolfson

Abstract Background and Purpose. The reliability and responsiveness of 2 physical performance measures were assessed in this nonrandomized, controlled pilot exercise intervention. Subjects. Forty-five older individuals with mobility impairment (mean age=77.9 years, SD=5.9, range=70–92) were sequentially assigned to participate in an exercise program (intervention group) or to a control group. Methods. The intervention group performed exercise 3 times a week for 12 weeks that targeted muscle force, endurance, balance, and flexibility. Outcome measures were the 8-item Physical Performance Test (PPT-8) and the 6-minute walk test. Test-retest reliability and responsiveness indexes were determined for both tests; interrater reliability was measured for the PPT-8. Results. The intraclass correlation coefficient for interrater reliability for the PPT-8 was .96. Intraclass correlation coefficients for test-retest reliability were .88 for the PPT-8 and .93 for the 6-minute walk test. The intervention group improved 2.4 points and the control group improved 0.7 point on the PPT-8, as compared with baseline measurements. There was no change in 6-minute walk test distance in the intervention group when compared with the control group. The responsiveness index was .8 for the PPT-8 and .6 for the 6-minute walk test. Conclusion and Discussion. Measurements for both the PPT-8 and the 6-minute walk test appeared to be highly reliable. The PPT-8 was more responsive than the 6-minute walk test to change in performance expected with this functional training intervention.


2014 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 626-637 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dane R. Van Domelen ◽  
Paolo Caserotti ◽  
Robert J. Brychta ◽  
Tamara B. Harris ◽  
Kushang V. Patel ◽  
...  

Background:Accelerometers have emerged as a useful tool for measuring free-living physical activity in epidemiological studies. Validity of activity estimates depends on the assumption that measurements are equivalent for males and females while performing activities of the same intensity. The primary purpose of this study was to compare accelerometer count values in males and females undergoing a standardized 6-minute walk test.Methods:The study population was older adults (78.6 ± 4.1 years) from the AGES-Reykjavik Study (N = 319). Participants performed a 6-minute walk test at a self-selected fast pace while wearing an ActiGraph GT3X at the hip. Vertical axis counts·s−1 was the primary outcome. Covariates included walking speed, height, weight, BMI, waist circumference, femur length, and step length.Results:On average, males walked 7.2% faster than females (1.31 vs. 1.22 m·s−1, P < .001) and had 32.3% greater vertical axis counts·s−1 (54.6 vs. 39.4 counts·s−1, P < .001). Accounting for walking speed reduced the sex difference to 19.2% and accounting for step length further reduced the difference to 13.4% (P < .001).Conclusion:Vertical axis counts·s−1 were disproportionally greater in males even after adjustment for walking speed. This difference could confound free-living activity estimates.


2018 ◽  
Vol 45 (9) ◽  
pp. 1273-1280 ◽  
Author(s):  
Grégory Pugnet ◽  
Zora Marjanovic ◽  
Christophe Deligny ◽  
Karine Boussardon ◽  
Ilham Benzidia ◽  
...  

Objective.To assess the reproducibility and the utility of the 6-minute walk test (6MWT) in systemic sclerosis (SSc).Methods.All patients with SSc who underwent at least two 6MWT within a minimum 3-month interval plus simultaneous routine clinical, biological, and functional evaluations were consecutively enrolled in this observational study over 6 years. Following American Thoracic Society guidelines, each 6MWT was repeated twice to assess the 6-minute walk distance (6MWD) reproducibility, with the highest value being reported for subsequent analysis.Results.Among 56 (38 female) included patients aged 46 ± SD 12.7 years, with 17 ± 10 modified Rodnan skin score (mRSS) and 1 ± 0.8 Scleroderma Health Assessment Questionnaire (SHAQ) at first referral, 277 6MWT evaluations (5 ± 3.9 6MWT per patient) were performed over 23 ± 22.5 months followup. Meanwhile, 8 deaths (87.5% SSc-related) occurred. The mean 6MWD absolute value was 457 ± 117 m with a 4 ± 2.2 mean Borg dyspnea score. The 6MWD intraclass correlation coefficient was 0.996 (95% CI 0.995–0.999, p < 0.0001). In multivariate linear regression analysis, these factors were independently associated with a lower 6MWD: sex (R2 = 0.47, p < 0.0001), mRSS (R2 = 0.47, p = 0.008), tendon friction rub (R2 = 0.47, p = 0.003), SHAQ (R2 = 0.47, p = 0.02), muscle disability score (R2 = 0.47, p = 0.03), DLCO% (R2 = 0.47, p = 0.0008), and left ventricular ejection fraction (R2 = 0.47, p = 0.006). The 6MWD at first referral was an independent predictor for the overall mortality (HR 0.99, 95% CI 0.988–0.999) and the SSc-related mortality (HR 0.99, 95% CI 0.988–0.999).Conclusion.We show strong reproducibility for the 6MWD and confirm the 6MWT utility to assess the overall prognosis of patients with SSc.


2018 ◽  
Vol 2018 ◽  
pp. 1-6
Author(s):  
Marietta L. van der Linden ◽  
Georgia Andreopoulou ◽  
Judy Scopes ◽  
Julie E. Hooper ◽  
Thomas H. Mercer

Foot drop is a common gait impairment in people with MS (pwMS) but in some foot drop may only occur after a period of prolonged walking and may be a sign of motor fatigability. The purpose of the study was to explore whether, for pwMS, an adapted six-minute walk test (6minWT) would result in an increase in foot drop as measured using electrogoniometry. Sagittal ankle kinematics were recorded for fifteen participants (10 females and 5 males, aged 37-64) with MS (EDSS 4-6) throughout the 6minWT. Ankle kinematics and temporal stride parameters were compared between the first and last 10 gait cycles of the 6minWT. Peak dorsiflexion in swing was significantly reduced at the end of the 6minWT compared to the start, with six of the fifteen participants having a decrease of two degrees or more. Statistically significant changes in temporal stride parameters suggested a decrease in walking speed. Our results suggest that with the protocol used in this study it is feasible to identify patients who experience increased foot drop as a result of a prolonged exercise task.


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