Validity of the Standardized Walking Obstacle Course (Swoc) as a Functional Balance and Mobility Assessment Tool in Frail Elderly Persons.

Reliability and concurrent validity of standardized walking obstacle course test in people with stroke

“…Insignificant correlations were found between the SWOC results and BBS scores and FTSTS times, which was surprising as the BBS and FTSTS both evaluate balance and are moderately correlated (r= -0.630, p < 0.001) (13). Our result is inconsistent with a previous study, which found a significant correlation between SWOC times and BBS scores in frail elderly participants (r = -0.819, p < 0.001) (30). Differences in mobility between our participants (mean SWOC time 21.26-23.80 s) and those in the previous study (mean SWOC time 70.5 s) may account for this inconsistency.…”

“…The mean SWOC completion time of our healthy older adults was only a sixth of that of older adults in a previous study (mean 70.5 s) (30). Our healthy controls were all active older adults in the community and some of them were in the labour force.…”

“…Our healthy controls were all active older adults in the community and some of them were in the labour force. In contrast, the participants in Gunther's study were frail, institutionalized and of older age (mean = 87.5 years) (30).…”