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. 2006 Dec;85(12):986-91.
doi: 10.1097/01.phm.0000233210.69400.d4.

Adding challenge to performance-based tests of walking: The Walking InCHIANTI Toolkit (WIT)

Stefania Bandinelli  1 , Martina Pozzi, Fulvio Lauretani, Caroline Phillips, Anne Shumway-Cook, Jack M Guralnik, Luigi Ferrucci
Affiliations

Adding challenge to performance-based tests of walking: The Walking InCHIANTI Toolkit (WIT)

Stefania Bandinelli et al. Am J Phys Med Rehabil. 2006 Dec.

Abstract

Objective: In this report, we provide a detailed description of and reproducibility data on the 14 performance-based tests of lower limb function included in the Walking InCHIANTI Toolkit, which were designed to mimic challenging situations that are encountered while walking in daily life.

Design: Five women and five men were randomly selected from each of the age strata, 65-74, 75-84, and > or =85 yrs, among those who received a functional evaluation in the Greve site at the second InCHIANTI study follow-up (total n = 30). Walking tests were administered twice at 2-wk intervals. Analyses were aimed at assessing reproducibility of the Walking InCHIANTI Toolkit components and the existence of a learning effect.

Results: Performance remained stable for eight walking tests and slightly but significantly improved for the 25-cm narrow-path walk, 7-m usual-pace, 7-m obstacle normal light, 7-m holding a package, and 7-m talking while walking tests. Test-retest reliability was in general very high, with 11 of 14 (79%) of the intraclass correlation coefficient values >0.80 and all except one (7-m holding a package) >0.75.

Conclusion: The walking tests included in the Walking InCHIANTI Toolkit show very good medium-term reproducibility and modest learning effect. Administering components of the Walking InCHIANTI Toolkit may help in the understanding of the effect of challenges encountered in daily life on walking performance.

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