Relative and absolute reliability of gait variables obtained from gait analysis with trunk acceleration in community-dwelling individuals with chronic stroke: a pilot study.
Tomohiro Fujimoto, Keita Sue, Takanori Yamabe and 1 others
PMID 36628148WHAT IT FOUND
Trunk acceleration sensors reliably track gait changes in chronic stroke patients, especially during fast walking.
Clinicians can trust small improvements measured this way, as the sensor noise is low enough to distinguish real progress from measurement error.
Key findings
01The reliability of gait measurements was high for both comfortable and maximal walking speeds, with consistency scores ranging from 0.70 to 0.99.
02Measurements taken at maximal walking speed were more reliable and had smaller error margins than those taken at comfortable speed.
03The reliability of the measurements did not differ consistently between patients who used walking aids and those who did not.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
The sample size was small (25 participants), so the results are preliminary and need confirmation in larger studies. The study only tested reliability within the same examiner (intra-rater), not between different examiners (inter-rater). Participants were all in the chronic phase of stroke and able to walk without assistance, so the results may not apply to those in acute recovery or with more severe mobility limitations. The study did not account for spontaneous recovery over time, though the one-week gap was short.
Declared interests
None declared.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume this device is equally reliable for all patient groups. The study only included individuals with chronic stroke who could walk without assistance, so it does not prove the sensor works well for those with severe mobility impairments or in the early stages of recovery.