Association between clinical instruments and gait kinematic parameters in individuals with Parkinson’s disease

Abstract

Introduction: Parkinson's disease (PD) is a chronic, progressive and degenerative disease of the central nervous system that affects the basal ganglia. Individuals with this disease have several clinical signs, including gait and balance disorders. Different tests and scales have been proposed to evaluate gait and balance disorders in PD, as well as the evaluation of kinematic parameters. Objective: To investigate the association between clinical instruments and gait kinematic parameters in Parkinson's disease patients. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study conducted with 10 PD patients aged 50 to 80 years old. Clinical evaluation was performed using instruments that included the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS - III), Dynamic Gait Index (DGI) and Performance Oriented Mobility Assessment of Balance (POMA-B). The space/time parameters such as mean velocity, cycle time and stride length were obtained from the Qualisys - ProReflex MCU motion analysis system. Descriptive statistics was performed to characterize the variables. Pearson’s correlation analysis was applied to verify associations between the gait kinematic parameters and the scores obtained in the DGI and POMA-B tests. Analyzes were performed using the JASP version 0.9 program (JASP Team 2019, the Netherlands), assuming a statistical threshold of 5%. Results: The subjects studied had on average 68 ± 7 years, and a mean DGI and POMA-b was 15 ± 3 and 14 ± 2 points, respectively. A positive and significant association was observed between gait speed and DGI scores. Stride length and cycle time were not associated with DGI scores (P> 0.129). A negative and significant association between cycle time and POMA-B scores was also observed. Other gait parameters were not associated with POMA-B (p> 0.183). Conclusion: In the present study, there was a significant association between kinematic parameters and clinical gait assessment scores in individuals with PD. From these results, added to the statistical characteristics of validity and reproducibility of clinical instruments, it is suggested that such instruments are adequate indicators of gait function in individuals with PD.