Walkway lengths for measuring walking speed in stroke rehabilitation

Authors

  • Shamay S.M. Ng
  • Phoebe C.M. Ng
  • Connie Y.W. Lee
  • Elva S.W. Ng
  • Mimi H.W. Tong

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.2340/16501977-0906

Keywords:

walking, stroke, speed, rehabilitation, hemiplegia.

Abstract

Objectives: To investigate the effect of walkway length (5, 8 or 10 m) on measurements of comfortable and maximum walking speed. Design: A cross-sectional study. Setting: University-based rehabilitation centre. Subjects: Patients (n = 25) with chronic stroke. Methods: Timed walking with different walkway lengths (5, 8 and 10 m) walkways were recorded using a stop-watch. Results: No significant effect of walkway length was found on either the comfortable or maximum walking speed in subjects with chronic stroke. For all walkway lengths, comfortable speed was significantly different from maximum speed (p < 0. 001). Conclusion: There is no significant effect of walkway length (5, 8 and 10 m) on either comfortable or maximum walking speed. Different walkway lengths can yield consistent results in measuring gait speed clinically. A 5-m walkway with standardized 2-m acceleration and deceleration distances is recommended as it occupies the least space and imposes less stress on subjects.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Downloads

Published

2011-12-06

How to Cite

Ng, S. S., Ng, P. C., Lee, C. Y., Ng, E. S., & Tong, M. H. (2011). Walkway lengths for measuring walking speed in stroke rehabilitation. Journal of Rehabilitation Medicine, 44(1), 43–46. https://doi.org/10.2340/16501977-0906

Issue

Vol. 44 No. 1 (2012)

Section

Original Report

License

All digitalized JRM contents is available freely online. The Foundation for Rehabilitation Medicine owns the copyright for all material published until volume 40 (2008), as from volume 41 (2009) authors retain copyright to their work and as from volume 49 (2017) the journal has been published Open Access, under CC-BY-NC licences (unless otherwise specified). The CC-BY-NC licenses allow third parties to copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format and to remix, transform, and build upon the material for non-commercial purposes, provided proper attribution to the original work.
From 2024, articles are published under the CC-BY licence. This license permits sharing, adapting, and using the material for any purpose, including commercial use, with the condition of providing full attribution to the original publication.

Crossref
Scopus
Google Scholar
Europe PMC