Comparison of Slip Training in VR Environment And on Moveable Platform.

Slip training is gaining popularity as an innovative fall intervention approach. The objective of this study was to compare the efficacy of two different slip training modality (moveable platform and virtual reality) in reducing fall frequency and improving reactive recovery in older adults. Thirty-six healthy older adults were involved in a laboratory study, and were equally and randomly divided into the control group, the moveable platform training (MPT) group, and the virtual reality training (VRT) group.

Use of item response analysis to investigate measurement properties and clinical validity of data for the dynamic gait index.

Background And Purpose: The Dynamic Gait Index (DGI) is a standardized clinical assessment that aids in evaluating a subject's ability to modify gait in response to changing demands. The purpose of this study was to use Rasch measurement theory to examine whether the DGI rating scale meets suggested psychometric guidelines, whether the hierarchical order of DGI tasks is consistent with a clinically logical testing procedure, and whether the DGI represents a unidimensional construct.

Subjects: Subjects were 84 community-dwelling male veterans (age range=64-88 years; mean+/-SD=75+/-6.

Feasibility of electromyography-triggered neuromuscular stimulation as an adjunct to constraint-induced movement therapy.

Background And Purpose: The purpose of this case report is to explore the feasibility of electromyography-triggered neuromuscular stimulation (EMG-stim) as an adjunct to constraint-induced movement therapy (CIMT).

Case Description: The patient was a 72-year-old man, 10 years poststroke, who did not meet traditional CIMT criteria. The EMG-stim was applied to the wrist extensors of the patient's weaker arm for one half of the CIMT training hours.

Rating scale analysis of the Berg Balance Scale.

Objectives: To examine, using Rasch analysis, the rating scale performance of the Berg Balance Scale (BBS) and to describe the 45/56 cutoff score in functional terms.

Design: Retrospective chart review of BBS scores. Rasch rating scale analysis was performed on these data.