The Minimum Number of Strides Required for Reliable Gait Measurements in Older Adult Fallers and Non-Fallers

While the value of walking gait metrics collected using pressure-sensing walkways has shown promise for fall risk assessment, there is no consensus on the minimum number of strides required to obtain reliable metrics. This study aimed to determine the minimum stride count required for reliable singl...

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Main Authors: Drew Commandeur, Marc Klimstra, Kaya Yoshida, Sandra Hundza
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2024-11-01
Series:Sensors
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/24/23/7666
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author Drew Commandeur
Marc Klimstra
Kaya Yoshida
Sandra Hundza
author_facet Drew Commandeur
Marc Klimstra
Kaya Yoshida
Sandra Hundza
author_sort Drew Commandeur
collection DOAJ
description While the value of walking gait metrics collected using pressure-sensing walkways has shown promise for fall risk assessment, there is no consensus on the minimum number of strides required to obtain reliable metrics. This study aimed to determine the minimum stride count required for reliable single-task (ST), dual-task (DT), and difference score (DS) measurements of the spatio-temporal parameters of gait in older adult fallers and non-fallers. Forty community-dwelling older adults (74.6 ± 3.5 years) performed 10 ST and 10 DT walking passes (~100 strides total) across a GAITRite™ pressure mat. Nine truncated datasets (1–9 passes) were created from the original for each walking condition to assess agreement using two-way random effects, absolute agreement, and single-rater intraclass correlations (ICCs). ICCs demonstrated that a minimum of one pass (~10 strides) is sufficient for reliable mean gait metrics for ST and DT conditions and 10–30 strides for DS, while 10–80 strides are needed for reliable gait variability measures, depending on the metric. This study provides stride count recommendations to ensure reliable gait measurement in older adult populations, highlighting that as few as 10–30 strides are necessary for mean metrics, while variability metrics may require up to 80 strides to ensure reliability.
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spelling doaj-art-cbc40fb14f1b4f7cb3cc69ca7a7dc0b72025-08-20T02:50:37ZengMDPI AGSensors1424-82202024-11-012423766610.3390/s24237666The Minimum Number of Strides Required for Reliable Gait Measurements in Older Adult Fallers and Non-FallersDrew Commandeur0Marc Klimstra1Kaya Yoshida2Sandra Hundza3Motion and Mobility Laboratory, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC V8P 5C2, CanadaMotion and Mobility Laboratory, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC V8P 5C2, CanadaRehabilitation Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, CanadaMotion and Mobility Laboratory, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC V8P 5C2, CanadaWhile the value of walking gait metrics collected using pressure-sensing walkways has shown promise for fall risk assessment, there is no consensus on the minimum number of strides required to obtain reliable metrics. This study aimed to determine the minimum stride count required for reliable single-task (ST), dual-task (DT), and difference score (DS) measurements of the spatio-temporal parameters of gait in older adult fallers and non-fallers. Forty community-dwelling older adults (74.6 ± 3.5 years) performed 10 ST and 10 DT walking passes (~100 strides total) across a GAITRite™ pressure mat. Nine truncated datasets (1–9 passes) were created from the original for each walking condition to assess agreement using two-way random effects, absolute agreement, and single-rater intraclass correlations (ICCs). ICCs demonstrated that a minimum of one pass (~10 strides) is sufficient for reliable mean gait metrics for ST and DT conditions and 10–30 strides for DS, while 10–80 strides are needed for reliable gait variability measures, depending on the metric. This study provides stride count recommendations to ensure reliable gait measurement in older adult populations, highlighting that as few as 10–30 strides are necessary for mean metrics, while variability metrics may require up to 80 strides to ensure reliability.https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/24/23/7666gaitfallersdual-taskGAITRitegait reliabilityolder adults
spellingShingle Drew Commandeur
Marc Klimstra
Kaya Yoshida
Sandra Hundza
The Minimum Number of Strides Required for Reliable Gait Measurements in Older Adult Fallers and Non-Fallers
Sensors
gait
fallers
dual-task
GAITRite
gait reliability
older adults
title The Minimum Number of Strides Required for Reliable Gait Measurements in Older Adult Fallers and Non-Fallers
title_full The Minimum Number of Strides Required for Reliable Gait Measurements in Older Adult Fallers and Non-Fallers
title_fullStr The Minimum Number of Strides Required for Reliable Gait Measurements in Older Adult Fallers and Non-Fallers
title_full_unstemmed The Minimum Number of Strides Required for Reliable Gait Measurements in Older Adult Fallers and Non-Fallers
title_short The Minimum Number of Strides Required for Reliable Gait Measurements in Older Adult Fallers and Non-Fallers
title_sort minimum number of strides required for reliable gait measurements in older adult fallers and non fallers
topic gait
fallers
dual-task
GAITRite
gait reliability
older adults
url https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/24/23/7666
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