A New Simple Performance Test Focused on Agility in Elderly People: The Ten Step Test

Abstract

Background: Not only the reduction of muscle strength or balance, but also the reduction of the agility are regarded as important factors of falls in elderly people. If an agility test for elderly people is established, the precision of the fall prediction rises and can be used for individual training. Objectives: To develop a new performance test focused on agility for elderly people and to evaluate the usefulness of this test. Design: Cross-sectional study. Setting: The Welfare Center of Kagami Town, Kagami Town Office, etc., Kochi, Japan. Participants: 828 community-dwelling, independent adults aged 20–99 years with no obvious cognitive or functional disability, were randomly recruited from Kagami town and the surrounding areas. Measurements: The Ten Step Test (TST, a new performance test), motor reaction time (MRT), knee extensor isometric strength, single leg standing time (SLST), and some other tests were used to evaluate the criterion-related validity and the content validity. TST was developed as a modified version of other step tests which require the subjects to place the whole foot on a block, then return it to the floor. In addition, female participants over 70 were asked whether or not they had fallen in the past year. Results: Excellent reliability for TST was found for interrelation (intra-class correlation coefficients, ICC = 0.96), and re-test reliability was sufficient (ICC = 0.86). Evidence for criterion-related validity was found through high single correlation with the timed supine-to-stand (r = 0.68) and high single correlation with MRT (r = 0.59). In addition, content validity was found through low correlation with knee extensor strength (–0.35) and SLST (–0.36) in 112 women over 70 years of age. The error rate by TST to predict falls (35.2%) was lower than the error rate by muscle strength (44.4%) and the balance (38.7%). TST confirmed decline after 50 years of age, and it conformed to a cubic curve. Conclusion: The findings indicate that TST is a reliable measure of agility, and it can help to predict the risk of falls. The decline of agility accelerates after 50 years of age. It shows that the decline of agility differs from the decline of leg muscle strength and balance.

Built Environment Characteristics and its Association between Physical Performance, Falls Risk and Functional Mobility among Malaysian Older Adults

“…Older adults experience various changes associated with aging, including decline in physical performance (leyk et al 2010) and increase in falls-induced injuries (Kannus et al 2005). We have demonstrated physical performance status among Malaysian older adults in our earlier study (Won et al 2014) and are almost similar to other studies (Miyamoto et al 2008;Balasubramanian 2014). Malaysian older adults have a low to moderate falls risk (Singh et al 2015).…”

Correlation between nutritional status and comprehensive physical performance measures among older adults with undernourishment in residential institutions

“…Poor performance was also noted on the agility test. The time taken to complete this test was noted to be approximately five-to-six times higher that of the average time taken by age-matched healthy Japanese older adults who scored a mean ± standard deviation of 6.68±1.05 seconds 35. The reason for this may be due to impairments in the prerequisites for agility, which includes muscle strength and balance ability.…”

“…The ten step test is a valid and reliable modified agility test for older adults 35. Participants were instructed to step one foot onto a block (10 cm height) and then quickly place the foot down on the floor and repeat again with the alternate foot.…”

A Novel Video Game–Based Device for Measuring Stepping Performance and Fall Risk in Older People

“…3 Older adults, particularly those with a history of falling, tend to be slower in initiating volitional step responses, 4 make inappropriately directed or multiple short steps in response to an external perturbation of balance, 5 and have an increased chance of collision between the swing and stance legs during compensatory stepping. 6 Several stepping tests exist that discriminate between fallers and nonfallers, 4,[7][8][9][10][11] with limited evidence that cognitive load is needed. 9 The choice stepping reaction time (CSRT) task has been better to discriminate between fallers and nonfallers than other sensorimotor and balance measures 4 and to predict falls in older people, mediated through physiologic and cognitive pathways.…”