Abstract
BackgroundThere is a need for objective movement assessment for clinical research trials aimed at improving gait and balance in persons with multiple sclerosis (PwMS). Wireless inertial sensors can accurately measure numerous walking and balance parameters but these measures require evaluation of reliability in PwMS. The current study determined the test-retest reliability of wireless inertial sensor measures obtained during an instrumented standing balance test and an instrumented Timed Up and Go test in PwMS.MethodsFifteen PwMS and 15 healthy control subjects (HC) performed an instrumented standing balance and instrumented Timed Up and Go (TUG) test on two separate days. Ten instrumented standing balance measures and 18 instrumented TUG measures were computed from the wireless sensor data. Intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) were calculated to determine test-retest reliability of all instrumented standing balance and instrumented TUG measures. Correlations were evaluated between the instrumented standing balance and instrumented TUG measures and self-reported walking and balance performance, fall history, and clinical disability.ResultsFor both groups, ICCs for instrumented standing balance measures were best for spatio-temporal measures, while frequency measures were less reliable. All instrumented TUG measures exhibited good to excellent (ICCs > 0.60) test-retest reliability in PwMS and in HC. There were no correlations between self-report walking and balance scores and instrumented TUG or instrumented standing balance metrics, but there were correlations between instrumented TUG and instrumented standing balance metrics and fall history and clinical disability status.ConclusionsMeasures from the instrumented standing balance and instrumented TUG tests exhibit good to excellent reliability, demonstrating their potential as objective assessments for clinical trials. A subset of the most reliable measures is recommended for measuring walking and balance in clinical settings.
Highlights
There is a need for objective movement assessment for clinical research trials aimed at improving gait and balance in persons with multiple sclerosis (PwMS)
Descriptive statistics, Intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) and 95% confidence intervals for all instrumented standing balance and instrumented Timed Up and Go (TUG) measures are shown in Tables 4 and 5 respectively
The current study provides important information concerning the test-retest reliability of measures extracted from an instrumented TUG and instrumented standing balance in PwMS
Summary
There is a need for objective movement assessment for clinical research trials aimed at improving gait and balance in persons with multiple sclerosis (PwMS). The current study determined the test-retest reliability of wireless inertial sensor measures obtained during an instrumented standing balance test and an instrumented Timed Up and Go test in PwMS. Craig et al Journal of NeuroEngineering and Rehabilitation (2017) 14:43 as the Berg Balance Test [6] Many of these scales are limited in their ability to accurately monitor progression of disease or intervention efficacy due to inherent subjectivity, lack of sensitivity in differentiating between groups, and poor reliability [5, 7]. Objective postural measures obtained from motion capture and posturography in PwMS have demonstrated fair to excellent validity and reliability in previous studies [8, 9]. Motion capture and force platform systems are not practical for use in most clinical settings due to high cost, difficulty of use, and lack of portability
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