The Timed "up and go" test: reliability and validity in persons with unilateral lower limb amputation.

OBJECTIVE

To determine the interrater and intrarater reliability and the validity of the Timed "up and go" test as a measure for physical mobility in elderly patients with an amputation of the lower extremity.

DESIGN

To test interrater reliability, the test was performed for two observers at different times of the same day in an alternating order. To test intrarater reliability, the patients performed the test for one observer on two consecutive visits with an interval of 2 weeks. To test validity, the results of the Timed "up and go" test were compared with the results on the Sickness Impact Profile, 68-item version (SIP68), and the Groningen Activity Restriction Scale (GARS).

PATIENTS

Thirty-two patients, age 60 yrs or older, with unilateral transtibial or transfemoral amputation because of peripheral vascular disease.

RESULTS

The Timed "up and go" test showed good intrarater and interrater reliability (r = .93 and .96, respectively). A moderate relationship exists between the Timed "up and go" test and the GARS, a good relationship exists with the "physical subscales" of the SIP68, and there is no relationship with the "mental subscales" of the SIP68.

CONCLUSIONS

The Timed "up and go" test is a reliable instrument with adequate concurrent validity to measure the physical mobility of patients with an amputation of the lower extremity.