Four-Meter Gait Speed: Normative Values and Reliability Determined for Adults Participating in the NIH Toolbox Study.
Richard W Bohannon, Ying-Chih Wang
PMID 30092204WHAT IT FOUND
Adults' four-meter gait speed from a still start averaged 1.12 m/s at usual speed and 1.61 m/s at maximum speed.
Men and younger adults were faster. A true change would need at least a 45% increase.
Key findings
01In 1320 adults, mean usual 4-meter gait speed was 1.12 m/s and mean maximum speed was 1.61 m/s.
02Gait speed was higher in men than women and in younger than older adults, with means from 0.95 m/s for usual speed in 80 to 85 year old women to 1.85 m/s for maximum speed in 18 to 29 year old men.
03The paper reports that a real change in 4-meter gait speed would require an increase of 45% or more.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
All participants were U.S. residents, so values may not apply to other countries or regions. Ethnicity subgroup values were not supported because some strata were too small. The authors used a public database and were not present during testing, so they cannot vouch for test quality. Only 164 adults were retested, and repeat measurements were only fair. The reliability limit means small score changes may not reflect real change. The values are for a static start; they are not directly comparable with dynamic-start or longer-distance norms.
Declared interests
The supplied publication types list research support from the NIH, Extramural. The provided text does not include an author conflict-of-interest declaration.
The easy way to misread this
Do not treat a small improvement or decline in a patient's 4-meter gait speed as a real change. The paper says repeat measurements were only fair and that a true change would require a 45% or greater increase.