Abstract
Objective
To evaluate the validity and reliability of the Berg Balance Scale (BBS) for use in
people with lower-limb amputation.
Design
Cross-sectional study.
Setting
Research laboratory.
Participants
Individuals (N=30; age, 54±12y; 20 men) with unilateral transtibial (n=13), unilateral
transfemoral (n=14), or bilateral (n=3) lower-limb amputation of dysvascular (n=7),
traumatic (n=14), infectious (n=6), or congenital (n=3) origin.
Interventions
Not applicable.
Main Outcome Measures
BBS, 2-minute walk test, L test, Prosthesis Evaluation Questionnaire-Mobility Subscale,
Activities-specific Balance Confidence Scale, and Frenchay Activities Index; self-reported
descriptors were also collected, including frequency of prosthesis use, number of
falls in 12 months before the visit, fear of falling, and daily mobility aid use.
Results
The BBS had high interrater reliability (intraclass correlation coefficient =.945)
and internal consistency (α=.827). Relations between the BBS scores and those of other
outcome measures were all statistically significant (P≤.001). Significant group differences in BBS scores were observed for fear of falling
(P=.008) and mobility aid use (P<.001), but not for multiple (≥2) falls in the previous 12 months (P=.381). BBS items involving reaching forward, turning 360°, tandem standing, and standing
on 1 leg had relatively greater frequencies of lower scores across participants.
Conclusions
The BBS appears to be a valid and reliable clinical instrument for assessing balance
in individuals with lower-limb amputation, but it may not be able to discriminate
between individuals with greater or lesser fall risk. Limitations in prosthetic motion
and control may be responsible for the challenges experienced on items of lower performance.
Future studies would be useful to assess the responsiveness of the BBS to interventions
aimed at improving balance in individuals with lower-limb amputation.
Keywords
List of abbreviations:
ABC (Activities-specific Balance Confidence), BBS (Berg Balance Scale), FAI (Frenchay Activities Index), LLA (lower-limb amputation), PEQ-MS (Prosthesis Evaluation Questionnaire-Mobility Subscale), ROM (range of motion), 2MWT (2-minute walk test)To read this article in full you will need to make a payment
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Article Info
Publication History
Published online: July 15, 2013
Footnotes
Supported by National Institutes of Health (grant no. 3UL1RR025741 ), National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (grant nos. H133P110013 and H133E080009 ), and the David Rubin, MD, Enrichment Fund. The opinions contained in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the US Department of Education or Health and Human Services.
No commercial party having a direct financial interest in the results of the research supporting this article has or will confer a benefit on the authors or on any organization with which the authors are associated.
Identification
Copyright
© 2013 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
