Balance-confidence is associated with community participation, perceived physical mobility, and performance-based function among individuals with a unilateral amputation

ABSTRACT

Objective

To explore relationships between balance-confidence and: 1) community participation; 2) self-perceived mobility; and 3) performance-based physical function among individuals with a lower-limb amputation using a prosthetic. Design: Retrospective, cross-sectional study. Setting: Outpatient, multidisciplinary amputee clinic. Participants: Patients (n = 45) using a prosthesis, aged ≥ 18 years, with a unilateral transfemoral or transtibial amputation of ≥1 year, were included. Methods: Participants completed the following self-report measures: Activities-Specific Balance Confidence Scale (ABC); Community Integration Questionnaire (CIQ); Locomotor Capabilities Index (LCI); and two performance-based measures (i.e. Timed Up and Go and 6 Minute Walk Test). Linear regression modeling was used to explore relationships between balance-confidence (i.e. ABC) and self-report (i.e. CIQ and LCI) and performance-based measures (p ≤ 0.0125). Results: After controlling for potential covariates (i.e. age, sex, and body mass index), balance-confidence explained 47.4% of the variance in CIQ (p = 0.000), 53.0% of the variance in LCI (p = 0.000), 20.3% of the variance in Timed Up and Go (p = 0.001), and 18.2% of the variance in 6 Minute Walk Test (p = 0.001). Conclusion: Lower balance-confidence is associated with less community participation, lower self-perceived mobility, and poorer performance among patients with a unilateral lower-limb amputation.

KEYWORDS:

• Amputees
• lower extremity
• social participation

Acknowledgments

The authors wish to thank the clinicians, residents, and students from the University of Delaware who assisted with the standardized data collections. This work was supported, in part, by the National Institutes of Health under grant number NIH/NICHD R03HD088668.

Declaration of Interest

Dr. Sions has received private funding from Independence Prosthetics-Orthotics, Inc. for conference participation to share results from the multidisciplinary amputee clinic. The other authors report no conflict of interest.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development [R03HD088668]