[Purpose] This study aimed to investigate the reproducibility and validity of the 50-m
walking test. [Subjects] Reproducibility was investigated in 19 community-dwelling elderly
women (mean age, 76.3 years), and validity was investigated in 31 community-dwelling
elderly individuals (12 men and 19 women; mean age, 75.7 years). [Methods] The time taken
to walk 50 m, the time taken to walk each 10-m section (laps 1–5), the time taken to walk
10 m, and grip strength were measured. In addition, the functional reach test (FRT),
one-leg standing test, and timed up and go (TUG) test were performed. [Results] In a
reproducibility analysis, the interclass correlation coefficient (1,1) was 0.97. In a
Bland-Altman analysis, no systematic error was found. The measured values from the 50-m
walking test included a measurement error of 1.5 s, and the acceptable margin of error was
confirmed to be 3.1 s. In a validity analysis, the 50-m walking test score was
significantly correlated with the 10-m walking and TUG test scores. [Conclusion] Our
results suggest that the 50-m walking test score may be a useful index of the walking
ability of community-dwelling elderly.
[Purpose] This study aimed to verify the usefulness of a 50-m round walking test
developed as an assessment method for walking ability in the elderly. [Subjects] The
subjects were 166 elderly requiring long-term care individuals (mean age, 80.5 years).
[Methods] In order to evaluate the factors that had affected falls in the subjects in the
previous year, we performed the 50-m round walking test, functional reach test, one-leg
standing test, and 5-m walking test and measured grip strength and quadriceps strength.
[Results] The 50-m round walking test was selected as a variable indicating fall risk
based on the results of multiple logistic regression analysis. The cutoff value of the
50-m round walking test for determining fall risk was 0.66 m/sec. The area under the
receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.64. The sensitivity of the cutoff value was
65.7%, the specificity was 63.6%, the positive predictive value was 55.0%, the negative
predictive value was 73.3%, and the accuracy was 64.5%. [Conclusion] These results suggest
that the 50-m round walking test is a potentially useful parameter for the determination
of fall risk in the elderly requiring long-term care.
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