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Background. We sought to determine whether skeletal muscle oxidative capacity, fiber

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Context:The most widely used method for postural balance assessment relies on the subjective observations of a test administrator Accelerometry has been shown to provide a valid and reliable method for assessment of balance, and recent advances in microelectromechanical systems have made the technology available in mobile electronic devices. Objective: To compare a mobile technology application with a commonly used subjective balance assessment. Setting: Biomechanics laboratory. Participants: Twenty-one nonathlete college-aged individuals (7 men, 14 women; mean age 23 ± 3 years) volunteered to participate. Subjects were excluded if they reported any preexisting condition that might affect postural balance. Results: A strong inverse correlation was found between the scores for the two balance assessment methods (r = -.767, p < .01). Conclusions: Advances in technology have provided an attractive means to objectively quantify postural balance with off-the-shelf mobile consumer electronic devices.

Background: The SWAY Balance Mobile Application is an FDA-cleared balance testing system which uses the built-in tri-axial accelerometers of a mobile electronic device to objectively assess postural movement. The system was designed to provide a means of quantitative balance assessment in clinical and on-field environments. The purpose of this study was to determine the intrasession and intersession reliability, as well as the minimum difference to be considered real, of the SWAY Balance Mobile Application.Methods: 24 individuals (15 male, 9 female; aged 25.96 (95.78 years)) performed the SWAY Balance protocol twice per testing session over a period of three testing sessions. Each testing session was separated by a minimum of seven days. Interclass Correlation Coefficients were calculated as an indication of the test-retest reliability. The minimum difference to be considered real was calculated to determine the minimum score change necessary to indicate an actual change in balance performance.Results: Mean SWAY Balance scores ranged from 86.90 (914.37) to 89.90 (911.19). Repeated measures ANOVA revealed no significant mean differences between SWAY balance scores of the experimental trials (F (5,115) 0 0.673; p 0 0.65). Excellent reliability was found (ICC(3,1) 0 0.76; SEM 0 5.39) with a minimum difference to be considered real of approximately 15. Conclusions:Results indicate that SWAY provides excellent overall reliability. However, it may be appropriate to have subjects perform a familiarization trial at the beginning of each testing session. Additionally, SWAY may demonstrate a ceiling effect when assessing balance improvements in those who already demonstrate good balance.