Responsiveness of the Timed 'Up and Go' test in people with Parkinson's disease

ObjectivesThis study evaluates the responsiveness of the Timed 'Up and Go' test in people with Parkinson's disease to determine its sensitivity in detecting changes in functional mobility.DesignRetrospective cohort study.SettingInpatient rehabilitation.ParticipantsOne hundred ninety-six people with Parkinson's disease.Main measuresData on the Timed 'Up and Go' test, the 10 m walk test, and the 6 min walk test, collected before and after an assigned multidisciplinary inpatient rehabilitation stay, were retrieved from an existing clinical database and analysed retrospectively, for the period from January 2020 to 2025.ResultsAfter a median (first quartile, third quartile) inpatient rehabilitation stay of 20 days (19, 27), significant (p < 0.001) median (first quartile; third quartile) changes and corresponding effect sizes were observed for the Timed 'Up and Go' test (-2 (-1; -4), effect size = -0.83), the 10 m walk test (-1 (0; -2), effect size = -0.61), and the 6 min walk test (44 (13; 86), effect size = 0.76). Analyses showed moderate correlations between changes in the Timed 'Up and Go' test and the 10 m walk test (Spearman's rank correlation coefficient = 0.35, p < 0.001) and between the Timed 'Up and Go' test and the 6 min walk test (Spearman's rank correlation coefficient = -0.32, p < 0.001).ConclusionThe Timed 'Up and Go' test demonstrated strong responsiveness to changes in functional mobility in people with Parkinson's disease. The consistent pattern of large effect sizes across all gait-related measures following multidisciplinary inpatient rehabilitation suggests that these assessments capture a shared underlying construct, gait performance, essential for maintaining independent community living.