How Should Pushing Off or the Use of Assistive Devices Be Incorporated in the Timed Up and Go for Persons With Parkinson Disease?

Abstract

ObjectivesTo determine (1) the relationship between assisted timed Up and Go (TUG) performance and the Parkinson's Disease Questionnaire-39 (PDQ-39), and (2) whether adjusting the TUG score (adding time) improves the relationship between TUG performance and the PDQ-39 in persons with Parkinson disease (PD) who use assistive devices or push off, or both. DesignCross-sectional. SettingTwenty participating National Parkinson Foundation Centers of Excellence. ParticipantsData were obtained from participants (N=6624) without exclusion at the 20 participating sites. InterventionsNot applicable. Main Outcome MeasuresThe relationship between TUG scores and PDQ-39 mobility scores was determined using the method of linear least squares. Adjusted scores were determined through minimizing the sum of the squared error. ResultsThe correlation between assisted TUG scores and PDQ-39 mobility scores was slightly lower (R2=.384) compared with the correlation between nonassisted TUG scores and PDQ-39 mobility scores (R2=.409). Adjusting assisted TUG performance scores for push off and for use of an assistive device resulted in a modest increase in correlation (R2=.399). ConclusionsApplying adjustments to assisted TUG may provide clinically important information for evaluating balance, mobility, and falls, and for determining the most effective therapeutic strategies for persons with PD.