Concurrent Validity Between Potential Screening Tests for Early Mobility Decline in Independent Community Dwellers.
Yuri Yoshida, Joseph A Zeni, YiLiang Zhu and 1 others
PMID 36112039WHAT IT FOUND
New screening tests for mobility decline correlated strongly with standard physical therapy measures in adults aged 40 to 75.
Scores from both test sets clearly distinguished three stages of functional decline, suggesting these tools can identify early mobility issues in community-dwelling adults.
Key findings
01Composite scores from the new Locomotive Syndrome (LS) performance tests showed a significant correlation with standard reference tests used in physical therapy.
02Standard reference test scores significantly differentiated between the three severity stages of mobility decline identified by the LS tests.
03The prevalence of substantial functional decline (Stage 2) increased significantly with age, rising from 5% in those aged 40–49 to 50% in those aged 70–75.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTsWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The sample size was smaller than the target number calculated for statistical power, though the authors state the results remained significant. The chair heights used in the Stand-up Test were based on Japanese standards, which are slightly lower than typical U.S. chairs, potentially affecting how participants performed the task. Participants were generally healthier and younger than the broader population of independent older adults, which may limit how well the results apply to more frail individuals. The study did not include participants with common medical conditions, so it does not show how these tests perform in patients with existing pathologies.
Declared interests
The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume these tests diagnose a specific medical condition or replace a full evaluation. The study only shows that these screening tools correlate with existing measures and can identify stages of general mobility decline; it does not prove they detect the underlying cause of that decline.