Development of the Modified Four Square Step Test and its reliability and validity in people with stroke.

Adults with stroke have difficulty avoiding obstacles when walking, especially when a time constraint is imposed. The Four Square Step Test (FSST) evaluates dynamic balance by requiring individuals to step over canes in multiple directions while being timed, but many people with stroke are unable to complete it. The purposes of this study were to (1) modify the FSST by replacing the canes with tape so that more persons with stroke could successfully complete the test and (2) examine the reliability and validity of the modified version. Fifty-five subjects completed the Modified FSST (mFSST) by stepping over tape in all four directions while being timed. The mFSST resulted in significantly greater numbers of subjects completing the test than the FSST (39/55 [71%] and 33/55 [60%], respectively) (p < 0.04). The test-retest, intrarater, and interrater reliability of the mFSST were excellent (intraclass correlation coefficient ranges: 0.81-0.99). Construct and concurrent validity of the mFSST were also established. The minimal detectable change was 6.73 s. The mFSST, an ideal measure of dynamic balance, can identify progress in people with stroke in varied settings and can be completed by a wide range of people with stroke in approximately 5 min with the use of minimal equipment (tape, stop watch).

Maximum walking speed is a key determinant of long distance walking function after stroke.

BACKGROUND: Walking dysfunctions persist following poststroke rehabilitation. A major limitation of current rehabilitation efforts is the inability to identify modifiable deficits that, when improved, will result in the recovery of walking function. Previous studies have relied on cross-sectional analyses to identify deficits to target during walking rehabilitation; however, these studies did not account for the influence of a key covariate - maximum walking speed. OBJECTIVE: To determine the relationships between commonly studied poststroke variables and the long-distance walking function of individuals poststroke when controlling for maximum walking speed. METHODS: Correlation analyses of cross-sectional data from 57 individuals more than 6 months poststroke measured the relationships between standing balance, walking balance, balance self-efficacy, lower extremity motor function, and maximum walking speed versus long-distance walking function. For a subgroup of subjects who completed training, the relationship between changes in maximum walking speed versus changes in long-distance walking function was assessed. RESULTS: Each measurement of interest strongly correlated with long-distance walking function (rs from 0.448 to 0.900, all Ps ≤ .001); however, when controlling for maximum walking speed, none of the other measurements remained related to long-distance walking function. In contrast, when controlling for each of the other measurements, maximum walking speed remained highly related. Moreover, changes in maximum walking speed resulting from training were highly related to changes in long-distance walking function (r = .737, P ≤ .001). CONCLUSIONS: For individuals in the chronic phase of stroke recovery, improving maximum walking speed may be necessary to improve long-distance walking function.

A step activity monitoring program improves real world walking activity post stroke.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to examine whether the walking activity of persons with stroke could be increased through participation in a step activity monitoring program and to assess whether this occurred through a change in the structure of walking activity. METHOD: Sixteen individuals living with chronic stroke (>6 months post-stroke) wore a StepWatch Activity Monitor (SAM) and completed a four-week goal centered activity monitoring program. Descriptors of step activity were averaged across baseline and the last week of monitoring, and were used to analyze the changes. Descriptors of step activity included: steps per day, bouts per day, steps per bout, total time walking per day, and the number of short (<40 steps), medium (41-500 steps), and long (>500 steps) walking bouts. RESULTS: As a group, the number of steps per day significantly increased over the four weeks of activity monitoring (p = 0.005). Subjects also demonstrated a significant improvement in the total time walking (p = 0.023), and the number of medium (p = 0.033) and long (p = 0.050) walking bouts. At the baseline and the final assessment, more than half of the bouts were short bouts of walking (67.6 ± 8% and 68.2 ± 8% respectively). CONCLUSIONS: A goal centered step activity monitoring program can improve daily walking activity after stroke through increases in the amount of total time walking, and medium and long walking bouts.

Time course of functional and biomechanical improvements during a gait training intervention in persons with chronic stroke.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: In rehabilitation, examining how variables change over time can help define the minimal number of training sessions required to produce a desired change. The purpose of this study was to identify the time course of changes in gait biomechanics and walking function in persons with chronic stroke. METHODS: Thirteen persons who were more than 6 months poststroke participated in 12 weeks of fast treadmill training combined with plantar- and dorsiflexor muscle functional electrical stimulation (FastFES). All participants completed testing before the start of intervention, after 4, 8, and 12 weeks of FastFES locomotor training. RESULTS: Peak limb paretic propulsion, paretic limb propulsive integral, peak paretic limb knee flexion (P < 0.05 for all), and peak paretic trailing limb angle (P < 0.01) improved from pretraining to 4 weeks but not between 4 and 12 weeks. Self-selected walking speed and 6-minute walk test distance improved from pretraining to 4 weeks and from 4 to 12 weeks (P < 0.01 and P < 0.05, respectively for both). Timed Up & Go test time did not improve between pretraining and 4 weeks, but improved by 12 weeks (P = 0.24 and P < 0.01, respectively). DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: The results demonstrate that walking function improves with a different time course compared with gait biomechanics in response to a locomotor training intervention in persons with chronic stroke. Thirty-six training sessions were necessary to achieve an increase in walking speed that exceeded the minimally clinically important difference. These findings should be considered when designing locomotor training interventions after stroke.Video Abstract available (see Video, Supplemental Digital Content 1, http://links.lww.com/JNPT/A63) for more insights from the authors.

Sampling frequency impacts measurement of walking activity after stroke.

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of sampling epoch on total time spent walking and number of walking bouts per day in persons with stroke. Ninety-eight persons with average age of 63.8 yr and average time poststroke of 43.6 mo participated. Participants wore a StepWatch Activity Monitor for 3 to 5 consecutive days. The number of strides taken was collected in consecutive 5 s epochs and down sampled into 10, 20, 30, and 60 s epochs. Total time walking and total number of walking bouts were determined for each day. Low activity days were defined as days below the 25th percentile of total steps per day and high activity days as days above the 75th percentile of total steps per day. Total time walking and total number of bouts were different for each sampling epoch (p < 0.001 for all). The 5 s sampling epoch resulted in calculation of ~40% of the walking time and ~6 times as many bouts as a 60 s sampling epoch. Differences were greater for low activity days (p < 0.001 for all). Sampling epoch affects daily step activity variables whose calculation depends on time, especially during low activity days. Sampling epoch must be carefully considered when designing studies aimed at understanding patterns of daily walking activity.

The structure of walking activity in people after stroke compared with older adults without disability: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: People with stroke have reduced walking activity. It is not known whether this deficit is due to a reduction in all aspects of walking activity or only in specific areas. Understanding specific walking activity deficits is necessary for the development of interventions that maximize improvements in activity after stroke. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to examine walking activity in people poststroke compared with older adults without disability. DESIGN: A cross-sectional study was conducted. METHODS: Fifty-four participants poststroke and 18 older adults without disability wore a step activity monitor for 3 days. The descriptors of walking activity calculated included steps per day (SPD), bouts per day (BPD), steps per bout (SPB), total time walking per day (TTW), percentage of time walking per day (PTW), and frequency of short, medium, and long walking bouts. RESULTS: Individuals classified as household and limited community ambulators (n=29) did not differ on any measure and were grouped (HHA-LCA group) for comparison with unlimited community ambulators (UCA group) (n=22) and with older adults without disability (n=14). The SPD, TTW, PTW, and BPD measurements were greatest in older adults and lowest in the HHA-LCA group. Seventy-two percent to 74% of all walking bouts were short, and this finding did not differ across groups. Walking in all categories (short, medium, and long) was lowest in the HHA-LCA group, greater in the UCA group, and greatest in older adults without disability. LIMITATIONS: Three days of walking activity were captured. CONCLUSIONS: The specific descriptors of walking activity presented provide insight into walking deficits after stroke that cannot be ascertained by looking at steps per day alone. The deficits that were revealed could be addressed through appropriate exercise prescription, underscoring the need to analyze the structure of walking activity.

Influence of systematic increases in treadmill walking speed on gait kinematics after stroke.

BACKGROUND: Fast treadmill training improves walking speed to a greater extent than training at a self-selected speed after stroke. It is unclear whether fast treadmill walking facilitates a more normal gait pattern after stroke, as has been suggested for treadmill training at self-selected speeds. Given the massed stepping practice that occurs during treadmill training, it is important for therapists to understand how the treadmill speed selected influences the gait pattern that is practiced on the treadmill. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to characterize the effect of systematic increases in treadmill speed on common gait deviations observed after stroke. DESIGN: A repeated-measures design was used. METHODS: Twenty patients with stroke walked on a treadmill at their self-selected walking speed, their fastest speed, and 2 speeds in between. Using a motion capture system, spatiotemporal gait parameters and kinematic gait compensations were measured. RESULTS: Significant improvements in paretic- and nonparetic-limb step length and in single- and double-limb support were found. Asymmetry of these measures improved only for step length. Significant improvements in paretic hip extension, trailing limb position, and knee flexion during swing also were found as speed increased. No increases in circumduction or hip hiking were found with increasing speed. Limitations Caution should be used when generalizing these results to survivors of a stroke with a self-selected walking speed of less than 0.4 m/s. This study did not address changes with speed during overground walking. CONCLUSIONS: Faster treadmill walking facilitates a more normal walking pattern after stroke, without concomitant increases in common gait compensations, such as circumduction. The improvements in gait deviations were observed with small increases in walking speed.