GAIT SPEED AND ACTIVITIES OF DAILY LIVING FUNCTION IN GERIATRIC-PATIENTS

Objective: To establish the relationship between gait speed (GS) and f unctional independence in elderly people. Design: GS is suggested as b eing a criterion standard in rehabilitation reflecting muscle strength . This study assessed the relationship between gait speed and function al independence in Activities of Daily Living (ADL). GS was measured b y portable accelerometer over 2 meters. The mean of 3 attempts was tak en. ADL function was measured by an occupational therapist using the m odified Barthel ADL Index. The relationship between these measures was assessed by a statistician. Setting: A geriatric unit in a hospital i n Scotland. Patients: One hundred sixty-one inpatients and outpatients were selected at random from the patients of a geriatric unit over a 3-month period. Patients were eligible if they were mobile with or wit hout a walking aid. Interventions: GS was measured by portable ultraso nic accelerometer. Patients were reviewed by an occupational therapist , blinded to their GS, who recorded functional capacity. Case sheet re view provided diagnostic details and cognitive function. The type of f loor surface was recorded. Main Outcome Measures: GS (m/sec), and Bart hel score. Results: Patients with GS of <.25m/sec were more likely to be dependent in one or more ADL function, p <.01. Those with a GS betw een .35 and .55m/sec were more likely to be independent in all ADL fun ctions, p <.001. Patients whose GS was >.55m/sec did not maintain this independence. There was no relationship between GS and floor surface or cognitive function. Conclusion: GS is a useful indicator of ADL fun ction in geriatric patients. (C) 1995 by the American Congress of reha bilitation Medicine and the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.