Validity and Relative Ability of 4 Balance Tests to Identify Fall Status of Older Adults With Type 2 Diabetes.
OBJECTIVE
The Berg Balance Scale (BBS), the Balance Evaluation Systems Test (BESTest), the Mini-BESTest, and the Brief-BESTest are useful tests to assess balance; however, their clinimetric properties have not been studied well in older adults with type 2 diabetes (T2D). This study compared the validity and relative ability of the BBS, BESTest, Mini-BESTest, and Brief-BESTest to identify fall status in older adults with T2D.


METHODS
This study involved a cross-sectional design. Sixty-six older adults with T2D (75 ± 7.6 years) were included and asked to report the number of falls during the previous 12 months and to complete the Activities-specific Balance Confidence scale. The BBS and the BESTest were administered, and the Mini-BESTest and Brief-BESTest scores were computed based on the BESTest performance. Receiver operating characteristics were used to assess the ability of each balance test to differentiate between participants with and without a history of falls.


RESULTS
The 4 balance tests were able to identify fall status (areas under the curve = 0.74-0.76), with similar sensitivity (60%-67%) and specificity (71%-76%).


CONCLUSIONS
The 4 balance tests were able to differentiate between older adults with T2D with and without a history of falls. As the BBS and the BESTest require longer application time, the Brief-BESTest may be an appropriate choice to use in clinical practice to detect fall risk.
1Lab 3R-Respiratory Research and Rehabilitation Laboratory, School of Health Sciences, University of Aveiro (ESSUA), Aveiro, Portugal. 2Institute for Research in Biomedicine (iBiMED), University of Aveiro, Aveiro, Portugal.
Alda
A
Marques
Alexandre
A
Silva
Ana
A
Oliveira
Joana
J
Cruz
Ana
A
Machado
Cristina
C
Jácome
D000058:Accidental Falls / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D004185:Disability Evaluation; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D026741:Physical Therapy Modalities / Q000592:standards*; D004856:Postural Balance / Q000502:physiology*; D011594:Psychometrics; D012372:ROC Curve; D015203:Reproducibility of Results