Gait parameters predicted by Timed Up and Go performance in stroke patients

BACKGROUND: The Timed Up and Go (TUG) is a test of functional mobility which is routinely used in the assessment of hemiparetic patients. This easy and rapid to perform test includes motor tasks which occur frequently in daily life (stand up, walk, turn, sit down). Correlations between TUG performance and kinematic and kinetic gait parameters have never been studied. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to determine whether kinematic and kinetic gait parameters would be more related to TUG performance than spatio-temporal parameters in stroke patients. METHODS: Sixty hemiparetic patients able to walk alone performed the TUG test and underwent 3D gait analysis and a clinical evaluation. A stepwise regression analysis was used to select the gait variables that best explained the variability in TUG performance. RESULTS: The percentage of the gait cycle spent in single support phase on the paretic limb was the factor which was the most predictive and correlated with TUG performance, explaining 67% of the variance. No kinematic or kinetic gait parameters explained TUG performance. The results also suggested that TUG performance is mainly related to paretic lower limb motor function. CONCLUSIONS: TUG performance in hemiparetic patients mainly depends on the motor ability of the paretic lower limb, particularly the single support phase on the paretic side. Kinematic and kinetic gait parameters do not predict the TUG performance in stroke patients.