Validity of the Sit-to-Stand test for the requirement of walking devices in patients with spinal cord injury

Abstract

The Sit-to-Stand (STS) test is a standard measure to evaluate lower extremity muscle strength and balance control in several groups of patients. However, there was no report on the use of STS test in patients with spinal cord injury (SCI). Thus this study aimed to investigate the validity of STS test compared to a standard criterion to identify the requirement of walking devices in 50 patients with SCI. The results demonstrated that subjects who walked without a walking device required significantly less time to complete STS test than those who walked with a walking device (P < 0.001). The findings of STS also significantly correlated with levels of walking ability of the subjects (r = -0.509, P < 0.001).  Results of this study warrant validity of the STS to identify the requirement of walking devices in patients with SCI.