A 3-year prospective study was conducted by Herman, Giladi, and Hausdorff on 265 healthy older adults (Herman, Giladi, & Hausdorff, 2011). The researchers evaluated the TUG test, in comparison to the Dynamic Gait Index (DGI) and the Berg Balance Test (BBT) in assessing the participants’ functional ability and risk for falls (Herman, Giladi, & Hausdorff, 2011). With the TUG test, the time is recorded as the participant stands up from a chair of standard height, between 44 to 47 centimeters, and walks at a comfortable pace with or without an assistive device (Herman, Giladi, & Hausdorff, 2011). The participant is then asked to turn, walk back and sit down and the recorded time is stopped when the participant is sitting down comfortably on the chair (Herman, Giladi, & Hausdorff, 2011). Time to complete the TUG test is dependent on the participant’s performance. The shorter the time a participant completes the test, the better the performance (Herman, Giladi, & Hausdorff, 2011). However, if the participant takes greater than or equal to 12 seconds to complete the TUG test, then he or she is at a higher risk for falling (CDC, 2013). The researchers state that the inter-rater reliability of the TUG test is very high among hospital in-patients and community-dwelling older adults (Herman, Giladi, & Hausdorff, 2011). Additionally, the researchers state that the TUG test has a moderate test-retest reliability in a large study of older adults, and the TUG test was able to identify fallers from non-fallers with an 87% sensitivity and specificity (Herman, Giladi, & Hausdorff, 2011). Although the BBT and DGI are both widely used, the TUG test appears to be a more appropriate tool, making it a valid tool, for clinical assessment for functional mobility in healthy older adults because it is
A 3-year prospective study was conducted by Herman, Giladi, and Hausdorff on 265 healthy older adults (Herman, Giladi, & Hausdorff, 2011). The researchers evaluated the TUG test, in comparison to the Dynamic Gait Index (DGI) and the Berg Balance Test (BBT) in assessing the participants’ functional ability and risk for falls (Herman, Giladi, & Hausdorff, 2011). With the TUG test, the time is recorded as the participant stands up from a chair of standard height, between 44 to 47 centimeters, and walks at a comfortable pace with or without an assistive device (Herman, Giladi, & Hausdorff, 2011). The participant is then asked to turn, walk back and sit down and the recorded time is stopped when the participant is sitting down comfortably on the chair (Herman, Giladi, & Hausdorff, 2011). Time to complete the TUG test is dependent on the participant’s performance. The shorter the time a participant completes the test, the better the performance (Herman, Giladi, & Hausdorff, 2011). However, if the participant takes greater than or equal to 12 seconds to complete the TUG test, then he or she is at a higher risk for falling (CDC, 2013). The researchers state that the inter-rater reliability of the TUG test is very high among hospital in-patients and community-dwelling older adults (Herman, Giladi, & Hausdorff, 2011). Additionally, the researchers state that the TUG test has a moderate test-retest reliability in a large study of older adults, and the TUG test was able to identify fallers from non-fallers with an 87% sensitivity and specificity (Herman, Giladi, & Hausdorff, 2011). Although the BBT and DGI are both widely used, the TUG test appears to be a more appropriate tool, making it a valid tool, for clinical assessment for functional mobility in healthy older adults because it is