How Should Pushing Off or the Use of Assistive Devices Be Incorporated in the Timed Up and Go for Persons With Parkinson Disease?

Abstract

OBJECTIVES:

To determine (1) the relationship between assisted timed Up and Go (TUG) performance and the Parkinson's Disease Questionnaire-39 (PDQ-39), and (2) whether adjusting the TUG score (adding time) improves the relationship between TUG performance and the PDQ-39 in persons with Parkinson disease (PD) who use assistive devices or push off, or both.

DESIGN:

Cross-sectional.

SETTING:

Twenty participating National Parkinson Foundation Centers of Excellence.

PARTICIPANTS:

Data were obtained from participants (N=6624) without exclusion at the 20 participating sites.

INTERVENTIONS:

Not applicable.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES:

The relationship between TUG scores and PDQ-39 mobility scores was determined using the method of linear least squares. Adjusted scores were determined through minimizing the sum of the squared error.

RESULTS:

The correlation between assisted TUG scores and PDQ-39 mobility scores was slightly lower (R(2)=.384) compared with the correlation between nonassisted TUG scores and PDQ-39 mobility scores (R(2)=.409). Adjusting assisted TUG performance scores for push off and for use of an assistive device resulted in a modest increase in correlation (R(2)=.399).

CONCLUSIONS:

Applying adjustments to assisted TUG may provide clinically important information for evaluating balance, mobility, and falls, and for determining the most effective therapeutic strategies for persons with PD.

• Authors: Elizabeth L Stegemöller, Peter Schmidt, Chris Hass, Irene Malaty, Michael S Okun, National Parkinson Foundation Quality Improvement Initiative Investigators
• Journal: Archives of physical medicine and rehabilitation (Arch Phys Med Rehabil) Vol. 96 Issue 9 Pg. 1728-32 (Sep 2015) ISSN: 1532-821X [Electronic] United States
• PMID: 25883039 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Multicenter Study, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't)
• Copyright: Copyright © 2015 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Topics

• Aged
• Aged, 80 and over
• Cross-Sectional Studies
• Disability Evaluation
• Female
• Humans
• Male
• Middle Aged
• Mobility Limitation
• Parkinson Disease (rehabilitation)
• Physical Therapy Modalities
• Self-Help Devices