Article

OBJECTIVES: To determine (1) the feasibility of pedometers for stroke patients
and (2) the level of agreement between pedometers and actual step count. DESIGN:
Observational agreement study. SETTING: Six stroke units. PARTICIPANTS:
Independently mobile stroke patients (N=50) ready for hospital discharge.
INTERVENTIONS: Patients were asked to apply 3 pedometers: 1 around the neck and 1
above each hip. Patients performed a short walk lasting 20 seconds, then a
6-minute walk test 6MWT.
Video recordings determined the criterion standard step
count. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Agreement between the step count recorded by
pedometers and the step count recorded by viewing the criterion standard video
recordings of the 2 walks. RESULTS: Five patients (10%) needed assistance to put
on the pedometers, and 5 (10%) could not read the step count. Thirty-nine (78%)
would use pedometers again. Below a gait speed of about 0.5 m/s, pedometers did
not generally detect steps. Agreement analyses showed that even above 0.5 m/s,
pedometers undercounted steps for both the short walk and 6MWT; for example, the
mean difference between the video recorder and pedometer around the neck was 5.93
steps during the short walk and 32.4 steps during the 6MWT. CONCLUSIONS:
Pedometers are feasible but generally do not detect steps at gait speeds below
about 0.5 m/s, and they undercount steps at gait speeds above 0.5 m/s.
CI - Copyright (c) 2012 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. Published by
Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Langue : ANGLAIS