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Reliability and Validity of the 50-ft Walk Test for Idiopathic Toe Walking
Catie Christensen1, Amanda Haddad, Elizabeth Maus
1The Division of Clinical Therapies, Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, Ohio.
Purpose:
To evaluate interrater reliability and concurrent validity of the 50-ft walk test (FWT) for children with idiopathic toe walking (ITW).
Methods:
Thirty children, 6 to 13 years old, with ITW participated. During the 50-FWT, an accelerometer counted total steps. A physical therapist counted the number of toe-walking steps. The number of toe-walking steps was divided by the total steps to calculate a toe-walking percentage. Interrater reliability was assessed by correlating the toe-walking percentage obtained by 2 raters using an intraclass correlation coefficient. Concurrent validity was evaluated by correlating the toe-walking percentage calculated by the GAITRite and therapist using a Spearman ρ.
Results:
There was excellent interrater reliability and concurrent validity. Experience level did not impact the therapist's ability to identify a toe-walking step.
Conclusions:
The 50-FWT demonstrated excellent interrater reliability and concurrent validity. It can be used to obtain a percentage of toe walking in children 6-13 years of age with ITW.
