Psychometric Properties of Timed Up and Go in Elderly People: A Systematic Review

ABSTRACT

The objective of this review was to critically evaluate the psychometric properties of Timed Up and Go (TUG) in a population of seniors living in their own homes or in institutions. Literature searches were performed in MEDLINE (OVID), CINAHL, AMED, Web of Science, and PubMed. The methods and results were rated using a standard checklist for appraising their qualitative attributes and measurement properties. A total number of 556 abstracts were reviewed, and 68 articles were included. The reliability of TUG was high in most studies but a majority of the studies were of doubtful design and there is a lack of studies evaluating absolute reliability. The validity was high in most respects except regarding prediction. Few studies gave any information about responsiveness with respect to TUG, yielding inconclusive results. TUG can be recommended to be used in most settings. It is a valid test but should not be used to discriminate between persons with a high or low fall risk in old age. Future studies should focus on evaluating responsiveness and absolute reliability.

KEYWORDS. :

• Mobility
• psychometric properties
• measurements
• physical function