The reliability and agreement of scores in a novel balance measure for older adults: Specific Training According to BaLance Evaluation (STABLE)

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Purpose: Falls are the leading cause of injury and premature death among community dwelling elderly but can be prevented through comprehensive balance rehabilitation which ideally targets the patient’s specific needs. In this study, we evaluate the reliability and agreement of six novel clinical measures of different balance domains which applied in a patient-specific balance profile guides exercise prescription in balance rehabilitation. Materials and methods: The intra-rater reliability and agreement of the six measures were evaluated on the same day in six different cohorts of elderly with balance disability (n = 65–100). Further, the inter-day intra-rater and inter-rater and test–retest reliability and agreement of the measures and the balance profile were evaluated (n = 100). Results: The intra-day intra-rater reliability and agreement was moderate to excellent (ICC2.1 = 0.525–0.968, with SDC% = 6.5–284.9%) but poor to good for the inter-day conditions (ICC2.1 = 0.123–0.832, with SDC% = 6.6–229.2%). The reliability of classifying the lower domain in the balance profile was fair, with kappa = 0.56 (95%CI 0.36–0.76). Conclusions: Five of the six measures may reliably be applied to measure balance disability and to guide rehabilitation.Implications for rehabilitation Balance disability is the primary reason for accidental falls among elderly but can be prevented through comprehensive individualized balance rehabilitation. Specific Training According to BaLance Evaluation (STABLE) is a novel approach for designing effective balance exercises based on clinical measurements. Five of the six measures are reliable when applied in a patient-specific balance profile to guide rehabilitation following the STABLE approach.

Original languageEnglish
JournalDisability and Rehabilitation
Volume45
Issue number21
Pages (from-to)3582-3594
Number of pages13
ISSN0963-8288
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2023

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

    Research areas

  • balance assessment, elderly adults, Fall prevention, rater agreement, rehabilitation exercises, reliability analysis

ID: 326464109