Article

The purpose of this study was to examine the utility of the Berg Balance Scale among patients with
motor incomplete spinal cord injuries (SCIs), to determine how the utility of the
Berg Balance Scale changes over time with activity-based therapy, and to identify
differences in scale utility across patient groups defined by status of recovery.
DESIGN: Prospective observational cohort. SETTING: The NeuroRecovery Network
(NRN), a network of clinical centers for patients with motor incomplete SCI.
PARTICIPANTS: Patients with motor incomplete SCI (n=124) with American Spinal
Injury Association Impairment Scale grade C or D, who were enrolled in the NRN
between February 2008 and June 2009. INTERVENTION: Standardized locomotor
training. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: The Berg Balance Scale items were examined with
longitudinal principal components analyses. Patients were categorized by phase
using the Neuromuscular Recovery Scale. RESULTS: In the full sample, the first
principal component explained a large percentage of overall scale variance (77%),
items were loaded homogeneously on the first principal component, and item scores
were well correlated with first principal component scores. In subgroups of low
and high functioning of patients, first principal component variance accounting
was reduced (49%) and only a few of the simplest and most difficult items
substantially loaded onto the first principal component. Item loading
coefficients evolved over time as patients recovered, with simpler items becoming
less important to the full scale and difficult items more important. CONCLUSIONS:
The utility of the Berg Balance Scale in patients with motor incomplete SCI in
early and advanced phases of recovery is limited. Specific item utility changes
as patients recover. Thus, a more comprehensive and dynamic instrument is
necessary to adequately measure balance across the spectrum of patients with
motor incomplete SCI.
CI - Copyright (c) 2012 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. Published by
Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Langue : ANGLAIS