What are the relationships between trunk control, balance and walking in individuals with multiple sclerosis with minor to moderate disability?
Britt Normann, Ellen Christin Arntzen
Abstract
Purpose This study aimed to identify relationships between trunk control, balance and walking in individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS) with minor to moderate disability to guide the content of interventions to optimise balance and walking.Methods and materials Correlation analysis of baseline data from a prospective randomised controlled study comprising 79 individuals with MS was conducted using the Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) 1.0–6.5 (mean 2.36), Trunk Impairment Scale-Norwegian Version (TIS-modNV), Mini Balance Evaluation Systems Test (Mini-BESTest), 2-min walk test (2MWT), 10-m walk test (10MWT), MS Walking Scale-12 (MSWS-12), Rivermead Visual Gait Assessment (RVGA) and number of steps using ActiGraphsWgt3X-BT. Log-transformations of skewed variables were conducted and Pearson correlation coefficients were calculated.Results Strong correlations (r = 0.70–0.90) between the 2MWT and 10MWT, the 10MWT preferred speed and number of steps, and the Mini-BESTest and 2MWT and 10MWT were identified. Moderate relationships (r = 0.50–0.70) were detected between the TIS-modNV and Mini-BESTest, as well as the 2MWT, 10MWT and RVGA.Conclusions The strong relationships support the need to address several aspects of balance to improve walking, while the moderate associations suggest that dynamic trunk control should be considered addressed in interventions for individuals with minor to moderate disability to optimise balance and walking.