Outcome Measures of Free-Living Activity in Spinal Cord Injury Rehabilitation

Purpose of Review The purpose of this article was to describe the utilization of body-worn activity monitors in the spinal cord injury (SCI) population and discuss the challenges of using body-worn sensors in rehabilitation research. Recent Findings Many activity monitor-based measures have been used and validated in the SCI population including stroke number, push frequency, upper limb activity counts, and wheelchair propulsion distance measured from a sensor attached to the wheelchair. Summary The ability to accurately measure physical activity in the free-living environment using body-worn sensors has the potential to enhance the understanding of barriers to adequate activity and identify possible effective interventions. As the use of activity monitors used in SCI rehabilitation research continues to grow, care must be taken to overcome challenges related to participant adherence and data quality.