Biomedical Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
characteristics including age, gender, foot size, type of MS and disease duration.
Twenty-nine subjects with MS, 12 male and 17 female, mean age 43,24
12,08,
were included in the study. Control subjects were eligible to participate if they met
the same inclusion criteria as the subjects with MS, with the exception of having
a diagnosis of MS and were recruited from a variety of sources of convenience.
The same exclusion criteria also applied to the control group. Twenty-eight control
subjects, 9 male; 19 female, mean age 36.79
˙
8,96, met the criteria for the study
and were tested. All subjects provided written informed consent prior to test
procedures and the study was approved by ethic commission of Portuguese Catholic
University were the study was presented. All subjects participated in one testing
session which included plantar pressure assessment and clinical test. The study
was conducted in accordance to recommendations guiding biomedical research
involving human subjects (Helsinki Declaration).
˙
3.3
Assessment and Data Collection
In this study, in order to obtain all necessary information to verify the variables, we
used two measurement instruments. One technical instrument, the plantar pressure
plate (Footscan
®
- 3D Gait Scientific System from RSSCAN
®
) kindly supplied
by the Laboratory of Physical Therapy, School of Health Alcoitao. The other
instrument is the Berg Balance Scale, a clinical instrument to measuring postural
stability. We also used video cameras to obtain images, to characterize the clinical
status of participants.
3.3.1
Berg Balance Scale
The Berg Balance Scale (BBS) consists of 14 standardized sub-tests (13 tests in
the standing position and 1 test in the sitting position), scored on five-point scales
(0-4), with a maximum (best) score of 56 [
19
]. Scores are based on the time that a
position can be maintained, the distance that the upper limb is capable of reaching
in the front of the body and the time to complete a specific task. Reliability and
validity have been demonstrated in elderly people [
87
], and scores below 45 indicate
increased risk of falling for elderly people [
88
]. Reliability and validity of the BBS
have not been established in persons with MS. However, the BBS has been found
to change in response to rehabilitation in adults with clinically stable MS [
89
]and
many studies included this scale to evaluate postural stability in MS [
8
,
90
,
91
].
A recent systematic review [
92
] to identify measurement tools of balance activity in
people with neurological conditions, concluded that BBS is psychometrically robust
and feasible to use in neurological disorders and clinical practice.
