Repeatability of temporospatial gait measures in children using the GAITRite electronic walkway.
OBJECTIVE
To determine the repeatability of selected temporal and spatial gait parameters in healthy children using the GAITRite electronic walkway.


METHODS
Immediate test-retest design.


METHODS
Community.


METHODS
A sample of 57 subjects (age range, 1.3-10.9 y) participated. Subjects were stratified into 3 age groups (1.0 to <4.0 years old, 4.0 to <8.0 years old, 8.0 to <11.0 years old).


METHODS
Not applicable.


METHODS
Subjects completed 2 barefooted test walks at preferred gait speed. Intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC(1,1)) values, 95% confidence intervals, the Bland-Altman limits of agreement, and coefficient of variation (CV) were calculated.


RESULTS
Overall, ICC values ranged from .05 to .93. The amount of clinically relevant error (CV) was acceptable for all gait variables across age groups with the exception of the toe-in/out variables (CV, 46.7%-92.9%) and the heel-to-heel base of support variable (CV, 18.6%-31.5%).


CONCLUSIONS
Repeatability of GAITRite measurements to assess temporospatial gait parameters in typically developing children walking at self-selected paces ranged from poor to excellent. Our repeatability data for child subjects between the ages of 1.3 to 10.9 years are comparable to adult data for the same temporospatial gait parameters. We believe that the GAITRite electronic walkway is an emerging clinical tool for assessment of gait in children with and without disabilities.
Thorpe
Deborah E
DE
Center for Human Movement Science, Division of Physical Therapy, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7135, USA. dthorpe@med.unc.edu
Dusing
Stacey C
SC
Moore
Charity G
CG
D002648:Child; D002657:Child Development; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D005684:Gait / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D015588:Observer Variation; D012046:Rehabilitation / Q000295:instrumentation*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D016037:Single-Blind Method