Validity of the Five Times Sit-to-Stand Test as compared with the Timed “Up & Go” Test in independent ambulatory patients with spinal cord injury

Abstract

The Timed “Up & Go” Test (TUG) is a valid and reliable measure to assess mobility in patients with spinal cord injury (SCI). The Five Times Sit-to-Stand Test (FTSST) is used to evaluate mobility and lower extremity muscle strength (LEMS) in many groups of subjects. Currently, there is no evidence on validity of using this tool in patients with SCI. This study investigated the discriminative ability and concurrent validity of the FTSST as compared with the TUG in 40 independent ambulatory subjects with SCI who walked with and without a walking device. Subjects were assessed for their functional abilities using the FTSST and TUG. The data were analyzed using the Independent-sample t test and Pearson’s correlation coefficient. The results demonstrated that the FTSST and TUG data were significantly different between subjects who walked with and without a walking device (P < 0.001). In addition, the FTSST had significantly fair correlation with the TUG in subjects who walked without a walking device (r = 0.653, P < 0.001) and significantly poor correlation in subjects who walked with a walking device (r = 0.371, P <  0.05). The findings confirmed the validity of the FTSST to assess mobility in patients with SCI. The different levels of correlation in subjects who walked with and without a walking device may reflect the different contribution of LEMS while walking and movements in subjects who walked with and without a walking device.