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Predicting the probability for falls in community-dwelling older adults using the Timed Up & Go Test.

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TLDR
The TUG is a sensitive and specific measure for identifying community-dwelling adults who are at risk for falls and the ability to predict falls is not enhanced by adding a secondary task when performing the TUG.
Abstract
Background and Purpose. This study examined the sensitivity and specificity of the Timed Up & Go Test (TUG) under single-task versus dual-task conditions for identifying elderly individuals who are prone to falling. Subjects. Fifteen older adults with no history of falls (mean age578 years, SD56, range565‐ 85) and 15 older adults with a history of 2 or more falls in the previous 6 months (mean age586.2 years, SD56, range576 ‐95) participated. Methods. Time taken to complete the TUG under 3 conditions (TUG, TUG with a subtraction task [TUG cognitive], and TUG while carrying a full cup of water [TUG manual]) was measured. A multivariate analysis of variance and discriminant function and logistic regression analyses were performed. Results. The TUG was found to be a sensitive (sensitivity587%) and specific (specificity587%) measure for identifying elderly individuals who are prone to falls. For both groups of older adults, simultaneous performance of an additional task increased the time taken to complete the TUG, with the greatest effect in the older adults with a history of falls. The TUG scores with or without an additional task (cognitive or manual) were equivalent with respect to identifying fallers and nonfallers. Conclusions and Discussion. The results suggest that the TUG is a sensitive and specific measure for identifying communitydwelling adults who are at risk for falls. The ability to predict falls is not enhanced by adding a secondary task when performing the TUG. [Shumway-Cook A, Brauer S, Woollacott M. Predicting the probability for falls in community-dwelling older adults using the Timed Up & Go Test. Phys Ther. 2000;80:896 ‐903.]

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Attention and the control of posture and gait: a review of an emerging area of research

TL;DR: New clinical assessment methods incorporating dual-task paradigms are helpful in revealing the effect of disease on the ability to allocate attention to postural tasks and appear to be sensitive measures in both predicting fall risk and in documenting recovery of stability.
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Age- and Gender-Related Test Performance in Community-Dwelling Elderly People: Six-Minute Walk Test, Berg Balance Scale, Timed Up & Go Test, and Gait Speeds

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Risk factors for falls among older adults: a review of the literature.

TL;DR: The major risk factors identified are impaired balance and gait, polypharmacy, and history of previous falls, which include advancing age, female gender, visual impairments, cognitive decline especially attention and executive dysfunction, and environmental factors.
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Reference values for the timed up and go test: a descriptive meta-analysis.

TL;DR: The reference values presented, though obtained from studies with clear differences, provide a standard to which patient performance can be compared, and patients whose performance exceeds the upper limit of reported confidence intervals can be considered to have worse than average performance.
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The Balance Evaluation Systems Test (BESTest) to Differentiate Balance Deficits

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References
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Intraclass correlations: uses in assessing rater reliability.

TL;DR: In this article, the authors present guidelines for choosing among six different forms of the intraclass correlation for reliability studies in which n target are rated by k judges, and the confidence intervals for each of the forms are reviewed.
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The Timed “Up & Go”: A Test of Basic Functional Mobility for Frail Elderly Persons

TL;DR: This study evaluated a modified, timed version of the “Get‐Up and Go” Test (Mathias et al, 1986) in 60 patients referred to a Geriatric Day Hospital and suggested that the timed “Up & Go’ test is a reliable and valid test for quantifying functional mobility that may also be useful in following clinical change over time.
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TL;DR: Balance scores predicted the occurrence of multiple falls among elderly residents and were strongly correlated with functional and motor performance in stroke patients.
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The Activities-specific Balance Confidence (ABC) Scale

TL;DR: The greater item responsiveness of the ABC scale makes it more suitable to detect loss of balancing confidence in more highly functioning seniors, and greater situation-specificity of items may also assist clinicians in targeting appropriate interventions.
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Measuring balance in the elderly: preliminary development of an instrument

TL;DR: The goal for this study was to develop a measure of balance appropriate for elderly individuals and there was a high degree of internal consistency, a Cronbach's alpha of .96, which indicates the movements reflect a single underlying dimension.
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