Validity of an Accelerometer Used to Measure Step Count in Children With Idiopathic Toe Walking

Area of Science:

• Pediatrics
• Biomechanical Engineering
• Gait Analysis

Background:

• Idiopathic toe walking (ITW) is a common gait abnormality in children.
• Accurate step counting is crucial for assessing treatment efficacy and monitoring disease progression.
• Wearable accelerometers are increasingly used to measure physical activity and gait parameters.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the accuracy of NL-1000 accelerometers in measuring step counts for children diagnosed with idiopathic toe walking (ITW).
• To determine if age influences the validity of accelerometer-based step counts in this pediatric population.

Main Methods:

• Seventy-five children with ITW, aged 2 to 13 years, participated in the study.
• Participants ambulated 50 feet while wearing an NL-1000 accelerometer, and their steps were simultaneously recorded via video analysis.
• Children were divided into two age groups: 5 years or younger (n=45) and 6 years or older (n=30) to assess age-related accuracy.

Main Results:

• A statistically significant difference was observed between accelerometer and video step counts in children aged 2 to 5 years (W = 72.00, P < .001).
• No significant difference was found in step counts for children aged 6 to 13 years (W = 65.00, P = .24).
• Spearman correlation coefficients indicated strong agreement in the older group (ρ = 0.92) compared to the younger group (ρ = 0.78).

Conclusions:

• Accelerometers provide valid step count data for children aged 6 to 13 years with idiopathic toe walking.
• The use of accelerometers for step counting is unreliable in younger children (2 to 5 years) with ITW.
• Age is a critical factor to consider when utilizing accelerometers for gait analysis in pediatric ITW.