title: Sideways walk test: Reliability and association with lower limb motor function after stroke.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate (i) the intra-rater, inter-rater and test-retest reliability of sideways walk test times and counts in individuals with stroke; (ii) their correlations with stroke-specific measures of impairment; (iii) the cut-off sideways walk test times and counts between stroke survivors and healthy controls; and (iv) the minimum detectable changes in the sideways walk test times and counts.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cross-sectional study.
  
  
  METHODS
  University-based rehabilitation centre.
  
  
  METHODS
  Twenty-nine older adults with stroke and 32 healthy controls.
  
  
  METHODS
  The sideways walk test was conducted together with Fugl-Meyer motor assessments of the lower extremities, lower limb muscle strength tests, the Five-Times-Sit-To-Stand test, Berg Balance Scale, Timed Up-and-Go test, and Activity-based Confidence and Community Integration Measure questionnaires.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The sideways walk test times and counts demonstrated good to excellent intra-rater, inter-rater, and test-retest reliabilities. The sideways walk test times and counts were significantly correlated with motor control and ankle dorsiflexor and plantarflexor strength of the affected leg, balance performance and functional mobility. The cut-off sideways walk test time and count that best discriminated between individuals with stroke and controls were 10.74 s and 8.83 steps, respectively. The minimal detectable change in the sideways walk test time in that situation was 1.85 s, and the count minimum detectable change was 1.12 steps.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The sideways walk test is a reliable and easy-to-administer clinical test for assessing sideways walking ability of individuals with chronic stroke.
authors: Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong (SAR), China. Shamay.Ng@inet.polyu.edu.hk, rssng@inet.polyu.edu.hk, Shamay.Ng@polyu.edu.hk.
authors: Shamay S M
authors: SS
authors: Ng
authors: Bobby K C
authors: BK
authors: Lau
authors: Gilbert T C
authors: GT
authors: Law
authors: Choco W K
authors: CW
authors: Wom
authors: Tai-Wa
authors: TW
authors: Liu
authors: Eric W C
authors: EW
authors: Tam
authors: Mimi M Y
authors: MM
authors: Tse
authors: Shirley S M
authors: SS
authors: Fong
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000843:Ankle Joint / Q000503:physiopathology; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D035002:Lower Extremity / Q000503:physiopathology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015588:Observer Variation; D026741:Physical Therapy Modalities; D004856:Postural Balance; D012047:Rehabilitation Centers; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D020521:Stroke / Q000503:physiopathology*; D000071939:Stroke Rehabilitation; D013997:Time Factors; D000070857:Walk Test / Q000379:methods*; D016138:Walking / Q000502:physiology