Contributions
Abstract: P387
Type: Poster Sessions
Abstract Category: Clinical aspects of MS - Clinical assessment tools
Introduction: People with mild multiple sclerosis (MS) report difficulties with muscle strength, imbalance, and incoordination, but these impairments are often undetected by current clinical measurement tools. A recently developed bipedal hopping test was able to distinguish motor impairment in people with MS (PwMS), without gait disturbances, from controls.
Objectives: In order to consider using the hopping test in clinical research, construct validity should be assured.
Aims: We aimed to compare metrics on a bipedal hopping test with current gold-standard measurements to determine convergent and divergent validity.
Methods: Participants (n=56) with low disability MS (Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) £3.5) completed tests of cognition (Montreal Cognitive Assessment; MoCA) and grip strength, as well as walking at self-selected walking speed and hopping on an instrumented walkway. Walking and hopping variables (e.g. velocity, length, variability) were extracted from the walkway software.
Results: As expected, hopping variables showed convergent validity with physical impairments and divergent validity with cognition. Longer hop lengths were strongly and significantly associated with decreasing EDSS (r=-0.36) and increasing grip strength (r=0.46). Walking variables used in clinical setting (such as stride length and velocity) were associated with hop length (r=0.44) and hop speed (r=0.34). There was no association between hopping variables and MoCA score. Lastly, hopping variables provided granularity within equivocal EDSS scores. For instance, hop length ranged from 29.28cm to 128.99cm in participants with an EDSS of 0.
Conclusions: Hopping, which is a more difficult task than walking, may be more sensitive when measuring balance and muscle strength among people in the low disability range. It showed good convergent and divergent validity with physical and cognitive measures and provided greater granularity among performance of patients who scored identically on the lowest range of EDSS. Bipedal hopping has the potential to be an important clinical measurement tool in tracking motor ability in the early stages of MS.
Disclosure: M.C. Kirkland: nothing to disclose; R. Cole: nothing to disclose; A. Chen: nothing to disclose; M. Ploughman: nothing to disclose
Abstract: P387
Type: Poster Sessions
Abstract Category: Clinical aspects of MS - Clinical assessment tools
Introduction: People with mild multiple sclerosis (MS) report difficulties with muscle strength, imbalance, and incoordination, but these impairments are often undetected by current clinical measurement tools. A recently developed bipedal hopping test was able to distinguish motor impairment in people with MS (PwMS), without gait disturbances, from controls.
Objectives: In order to consider using the hopping test in clinical research, construct validity should be assured.
Aims: We aimed to compare metrics on a bipedal hopping test with current gold-standard measurements to determine convergent and divergent validity.
Methods: Participants (n=56) with low disability MS (Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) £3.5) completed tests of cognition (Montreal Cognitive Assessment; MoCA) and grip strength, as well as walking at self-selected walking speed and hopping on an instrumented walkway. Walking and hopping variables (e.g. velocity, length, variability) were extracted from the walkway software.
Results: As expected, hopping variables showed convergent validity with physical impairments and divergent validity with cognition. Longer hop lengths were strongly and significantly associated with decreasing EDSS (r=-0.36) and increasing grip strength (r=0.46). Walking variables used in clinical setting (such as stride length and velocity) were associated with hop length (r=0.44) and hop speed (r=0.34). There was no association between hopping variables and MoCA score. Lastly, hopping variables provided granularity within equivocal EDSS scores. For instance, hop length ranged from 29.28cm to 128.99cm in participants with an EDSS of 0.
Conclusions: Hopping, which is a more difficult task than walking, may be more sensitive when measuring balance and muscle strength among people in the low disability range. It showed good convergent and divergent validity with physical and cognitive measures and provided greater granularity among performance of patients who scored identically on the lowest range of EDSS. Bipedal hopping has the potential to be an important clinical measurement tool in tracking motor ability in the early stages of MS.
Disclosure: M.C. Kirkland: nothing to disclose; R. Cole: nothing to disclose; A. Chen: nothing to disclose; M. Ploughman: nothing to disclose