PMID- 36745156 OWN - NLM STAT- MEDLINE DCOM- 20230306 LR - 20230328 IS - 1973-9095 (Electronic) IS - 1973-9087 (Print) IS - 1973-9087 (Linking) VI - 59 IP - 1 DP - 2023 Feb TI - Loaded and unloaded timed stair tests as tools for assessing advanced functional mobility in people with stroke. PG - 14-24 LID - 10.23736/S1973-9087.23.07620-7 [doi] AB - BACKGROUND: The Timed Stair Test (TST) was originally designed to measure advanced functional mobility in patients who have undergone a total hip replacement. Its psychometric properties have not been examined systematically in people with stroke. AIM: The aims of this study were to: 1) determine the intra-rater reliability of TST under loaded and unloaded condition; 2) identify the minimal detectable changes (MDCs) in TST completion times; 3) investigate the concurrent validity between TST completion times and stroke-specific outcome measures; and 4) determine the cut-off TST completion time to differentiate the performance between people with stroke and healthy older adults. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: A university-based rehabilitation center. POPULATION: Ninety-four people with stroke and 34 healthy older adults. METHODS: TSTs were conducted under loaded and unloaded conditions. Two trials of the TST for each of the two conditions were performed on the same day. The Fugl-Meyer Assessment of Lower Extremity (FMA-LE), lower-limb muscle strength test assessed by a hand held dynamometer, Berg Balance Scale (BBS), Limit of Stability (LOS) Test, Timed Up and Go (TUG) Test, and the Cantonese version of the Community Integration Measure (CIM) were also used to assess the subjects. RESULTS: Excellent intra-rater reliability was demonstrated for TST completion times under loaded (intraclass correlation coefficient [ICC2,1]=0.991) and unloaded (ICC2,1=0.985) conditions. The MDCs in TST completion times were 6.55 seconds and 7.25 seconds under loaded and unloaded conditions, respectively. FMA-LE scores, mean strength of the affected-side dorsiflexors and plantar flexors, BBS scores, and LOS movement velocity and maximum excursion scores demonstrated fair to excellent negative correlations with TST completion times under both loaded (r=-0.314 to -0.786) and unloaded (r=-0.296 to -0.794) conditions. TUG results demonstrated good to excellent positive correlations with TST completion times under both loaded (r=0.875, P<0.001) and unloaded (r=0.872, P<0.001) conditions. The TST completion times of 26.3 seconds and 23.4 seconds under loaded and unloaded conditions, respectively, differentiated between people with stroke and healthy older adults. CONCLUSIONS: The TST is a reliable clinical tool for evaluating advanced functional mobility in people with stroke. CLINICAL REHABILITATION IMPACT: TST is a fast and simple test that does not require sophisticated equipment, making it suitable for busy hospital and rehabilitation settings. FAU - Ng, Shamay S AU - Ng SS AD - Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, China - Shamay.Ng@polyu.edu.hk. FAU - Liu, Tai-Wa AU - Liu TW AD - School of Nursing and Health Studies, Hong Kong Metropolitan University, Hong Kong, China. FAU - Chen, Peiming AU - Chen P AD - Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, China. FAU - Lau, Sum Y AU - Lau SY AD - Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, China. FAU - Lee, Victoria C AU - Lee VC AD - Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, China. FAU - Leung, Yat C AU - Leung YC AD - Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, China. FAU - Ng, Chi K AU - Ng CK AD - Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, China. FAU - Suen, Suk M AU - Suen SM AD - Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, China. FAU - Wong, Thomson W AU - Wong TW AD - Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, China. FAU - Xu, Richard AU - Xu R AD - Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, China. FAU - Tse, Mimi M AU - Tse MM AD - School of Nursing and Health Studies, Hong Kong Metropolitan University, Hong Kong, China. FAU - Lai, Cynthia Y AU - Lai CY AD - Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, China. LA - eng PT - Journal Article DEP - 20230206 PL - Italy TA - Eur J Phys Rehabil Med JT - European journal of physical and rehabilitation medicine JID - 101465662 SB - IM MH - Humans MH - Aged MH - Cross-Sectional Studies MH - Reproducibility of Results MH - Disability Evaluation MH - *Stroke MH - *Stroke Rehabilitation/methods MH - Postural Balance/physiology PMC - PMC10035362 COIS- Conflicts of interest.-The authors certify that there is no conflict of interest with any financial organization regarding the material discussed in the manuscript. EDAT- 2023/02/07 06:00 MHDA- 2023/03/07 06:00 PMCR- 2023/02/06 CRDT- 2023/02/06 11:09 PHST- 2023/02/07 06:00 [pubmed] PHST- 2023/03/07 06:00 [medline] PHST- 2023/02/06 11:09 [entrez] PHST- 2023/02/06 00:00 [pmc-release] AID - S1973-9087.23.07620-7 [pii] AID - 7620 [pii] AID - 10.23736/S1973-9087.23.07620-7 [doi] PST - ppublish SO - Eur J Phys Rehabil Med. 2023 Feb;59(1):14-24. doi: 10.23736/S1973-9087.23.07620-7. Epub 2023 Feb 6.