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Clinical Assessment of Spatiotemporal Gait Parameters in Patients and Older Adults
Published on: November 7, 2014
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Gait Speed and Dismobility in Older Adults
Glenn V Ostir1, Ivonne M Berges1, Kenneth J Ottenbacher2
1Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, Division of Gerontology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD.
Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
|June 13, 2015
Summary
Hospitalized older patients with slow gait speed, a condition termed dismobility, face a significantly higher mortality risk. This simple gait speed assessment can inform prognosis and treatment discussions.
Area of Science:
- Geriatric Medicine
- Clinical Epidemiology
- Public Health
Background:
- Slow gait speed is a common indicator of frailty in older adults.
- Assessing gait speed in hospitalized older patients can identify individuals at high risk.
- Dismobility, defined by slow gait speed, requires further investigation for its prognostic value.
Purpose of the Study:
- To classify hospitalized older patients based on gait speed.
- To determine if slow gait speed (dismobility) is associated with increased mortality risk.
- To evaluate the utility of gait speed as a prognostic tool in geriatric care.
Main Methods:
- Prospective study design.
- Inclusion of 289 older patients admitted to an acute care geriatric hospital unit.
- Two-year survival was assessed via medical records and the National Death Index.
Main Results:
- 73.7% of patients (213/289) were classified with dismobility (gait speed ≤0.6 m/s).
- 17% (49/289) of the total sample died within two years.
- Patients with dismobility were over 2.5 times more likely to die compared to those with faster gait speeds, even after adjustments.
Conclusions:
- Gait speed is a simple, quick screening tool for hospitalized older patients.
- A clinical classification of dismobility provides valuable prognostic information for healthcare teams.
- Identifying dismobility offers opportunities for timely treatment discussions and interventions.
