Correlations of the Gait Profile Score and the Movement Analysis Profile relative to clinical judgments

Abstract

The Gait Profile Score (GPS) is a single index measure that summarises the overall deviation of kinematic gait data relative to normative data. The GPS can be decomposed to provide Gait Variable Scores (GVS) of nine key component kinematic gait variables, which are presented as a Movement Analysis Profile (MAP). The purpose of this study was to investigate the validity of the GPS and MAP relative to clinician judgments. Kinematic data were selected from 60 children and inspected by 17 experienced clinicians. The degree of abnormality of the overall unilateral gait pattern and the nine kinematic variables was rated according to a 0–10 point scale. Strong, significant, positive correlations were found between the GPS and MAP component scores, and clinicians’ ratings of kinematic gait deviation, with Spearman correlations ranging from 0.84 to 0.97. These high correlations provide evidence that the GPS and the MAP have criterion-related validity relative to clinician judgments. We propose that the GPS and particularly its MAP decomposition may be useful in clinical practice and education as an adjunct to the traditional presentation of complex kinematic data.