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Published on: December 11, 2013
Concurrent validity, test-retest reliability, and sensitivity of a PostureRite system measurement on dynamic postural
Heejun Kim1,2, Chanhee Park1,2, Joshua Sung H You1,2
1Sports Movement Artificial Robotics Technology (SMART) Institute, Department of Physical Therapy, Yonsei University, Wonju, Republic of Korea.
Insights
A new wearable system, PostureRite, accurately measures dynamic postural sway in children with cerebral palsy (CP). This affordable device shows high validity and reliability, aiding in better diagnosis and intervention for CP.
Area of Science:
- Biomedical Engineering
- Rehabilitation Technology
- Pediatric Neurology
Background:
- Accurate diagnosis of dynamic postural sway (DPS) is crucial for effective intervention in children with cerebral palsy (CP).
- Existing methods for measuring DPS can be cumbersome or expensive.
- A need exists for a reliable, accessible system to quantify DPS during daily activities.
Purpose of the Study:
- To validate and assess the reliability of the PostureRite system for measuring DPS in children with CP.
- To explore the correlation between PostureRite measurements and established clinical assessments (GMFM, PBS, FES).
- To determine the sensitivity of PostureRite in differentiating DPS between healthy children and those with CP.
Main Methods:
- Developed and utilized a wearable, wireless PostureRite system to measure DPS.
- Recruited 11 healthy adults and 10 children with CP for the study.
- Assessed concurrent validity against a gold-standard accelerometer, test-retest reliability over three sessions, and sensitivity to detect group differences.
Main Results:
- PostureRite demonstrated excellent concurrent validity with the gold-standard accelerometer (ICC2,k = 0.973, P < 0.05).
- High test-retest reliability was confirmed across three measurement occasions (ICC3,k = 0.816-0.924, P < 0.05).
- Significant differences in DPS were observed between healthy adults and children with CP (P < 0.05), indicating system sensitivity.
Conclusions:
- The PostureRite system is a valid, reliable, and sensitive tool for measuring DPS in children with CP during functional activities.
- This portable and affordable system can aid in the objective assessment of gross motor function and participation in daily life.
- PostureRite offers clinical relevance for diagnosing and monitoring individuals with CP.
Background:
Accurately diagnosing dynamic postural sway (DPS) is essential for effective and sustainable intervention in children with cerebral palsy (CP). We developed an accurate, inexpensive, and wearable DPS measurement system to measure DPS accurately and consistently during walking and functional activities of daily living.
Objective:
We investigated the validity and reliability of this PostureRite system in children with CP, and the link between PostureRite and clinical measures including gross motor function measure (GMFM), pediatric balance scale (PBS), and fall efficacy scale (FES).
Methods:
Twenty-one participants were categorized as follows: 11 healthy adults (3 females, mean age, 25.00±1.00 years) and 10 children with CP (mean age, 11.10±6.28 years). We determined the concurrent validity of PostureRite by comparing DPS data to the gold standard accelerometer measurement results. We determined test-retest reliability by measuring DPS data on three occasions at 2-h intervals. We assessed PostureRite measurement sensitivity to ascertain differences between healthy children and children with CP DPS measurements.
Results:
Random and mixed intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC2,k and ICC3,k) were obtained; an independent T-test was performed (P < 0.05). Concurrent validity analysis showed a good relationship between the gold standard accelerometer and PostureRite (ICC2,k = 0.973, P < 0.05). Test-retest reliability demonstrated a good relationship across the three repeated measures of the DPS data (ICC3,k = 0.816-0.924, P < 0.05). Independent T-test revealed a significant difference in DPS data between healthy adults and children with CP (P < 0.05).
Conclusions:
We developed a portable, wireless, and affordable PostureRite system to measure DPS during gross motor function associated with daily activity and participation, and established the concurrent validity, test-retest reliability as sensitivity, and clinical relevance by comparing the DPS obtained from the participants with and without CP.
