title: Reliability of the Berg Balance Scale as a Clinical Measure of Balance in Community-Dwelling Older Adults with Mild to Moderate Alzheimer Disease: A Pilot Study.
abstract: To measure test-retest and interrater reliability of the Berg Balance Scale (BBS) in community-dwelling adults with mild to moderate Alzheimer disease (AD). Method : A sample of 15 adults (mean age 80.20 [SD 5.03] years) with AD performed three balance tests: the BBS, timed up-and-go test (TUG), and Functional Reach Test (FRT). Both relative reliability, using the intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC), and absolute reliability, using standard error of measurement (SEM) and minimal detectable change (MDC95) values, were calculated; Bland-Altman plots were constructed to evaluate inter-tester agreement. The test-retest interval was 1 week. Results : For the BBS, relative reliability values were 0.95 (95% CI, 0.85-0.98) for test-retest reliability and 0.72 (95% CI, 0.31-0.91) for interrater reliability; SEM was 6.01 points and MDC95 was 16.66 points; and interrater agreement was 16.62 points. The BBS performed better in test-retest reliability than the TUG and FRT, tests with established reliability in AD. Between 33% and 50% of participants required cueing beyond standardized instructions because they were unable to remember test instructions. Conclusions : The BBS achieved relative reliability values that support its clinical utility, but MDC95 and agreement values indicate the scale has performance limitations in AD. Further research to optimize balance assessment for people with AD is required.
authors.affiliation: School of Physical Therapy; Gait and Brain Lab, Parkwood Hospital, Lawson Health Research Institute.
authors.forename: Susan W
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: Muir-Hunter
authors.affiliation: Neurotrauma Rehab Program, Parkwood Hospital, London, Ont.
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Graham
authors.affiliation: Gait and Brain Lab, Parkwood Hospital, Lawson Health Research Institute; Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Division of Geriatric Medicine; Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of Western Ontario.
authors.forename: Manuel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Montero Odasso
keywords: Alzheimer disease; accidental falls; dementia; postural balance; reproducibility of results
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