Sensitivity to change of mobility measures in musculoskeletal conditions on lower extremities in outpatient rehabilitation settings

Abstract

Study design: Prospective longitudinal study.

Objective: To examine the sensitivity of the Mobility Activities Measure for lower extremities and to compare it to the sensitivity of the Physical Functioning Scale (PF-10) and the Patient-Specific Functional Scale (PSFS) at week 4 and week 8 post-hospitalization in outpatient rehabilitation settings.

Background: Mobility Activities Measure is a set of short mobility measures to track outpatient rehabilitation progress: its scales have shown good properties but its sensitivity to change has not been reported.

Methods: Patients with musculoskeletal conditions were recruited at admission in three outpatient rehabilitation settings in Spain. Data were collected at admission, week 4 and week 8 from an initial sample of 236 patients (mean age ± SD = 36.7 ± 11.1). Main outcome measures: Mobility Activities Measure scales for lower extremity; PF-10; and PSFS.

Results: All the Mobility Activities Measure scales were sensitive to both positive and negative changes (the Standardized Response Means (SRMs) ranged between 1.05 and 1.53 at week 4, and between 0.63 and 1.47 at week 8). The summary measure encompassing the three Mobility Activities Measure scales detected a higher proportion of participants who had improved beyond the minimal detectable change (MDC) than detected by the PSFS and the PF-10 both at week 4 (86.64% vs. 69.81% and 42.23%, respectively) and week 8 (71.14% vs. 55.65% and 60.81%, respectively).

Conclusions: The three Mobility Activities Measure scales assessing the lower extremity can be used across outpatient rehabilitation settings to provide consistent and sensitive measures of changes in patients’ mobility.

Implications for rehabilitation

• All the scales of the Mobility Activities Measure for the lower extremity were sensitive to both positive and negative change across the follow-up periods.

• Overall, the summary measure encompassing the three Mobility Activities Measure scales for the lower extremity appeared more sensitive to positive changes than the Physical Functioning Scale, especially during the first four weeks of treatment.

• The summary measure also detected a higher percentage of participants with positive change that exceeded the minimal detectable change than the Patient-Specific Functional Scale and the Physical Functioning Scale at the first follow-up period.

• By demonstrating their consistency and sensitivity to change, the three Mobility Activities Measures scales can now be considered in order to track patients’ functional progress.

• Mobility Activities Measure can be therefore used in patients with musculoskeletal conditions across outpatient rehabilitation settings to provide estimates of change in mobility activities focusing on the lower extremity.

Keywords:

• Sensitivity to change
• musculoskeletal
• lower extremities
• outpatient
• rehabilitation

Acknowledgements

No manuscript or abstract of the present research has been presented elsewhere.

Disclosure statement

The authors report no declarations of interest.

Additional information

Funding

Supported and endorsed by Health Research Fund from Institute of Health Carlos III, ISCIII-Sub-Directorate General for Research Assessment and Promotion, Spain’s National Plan for Science and Technology Research, Development and Innovation 2008–2011, Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (grant no. PI12/02466), Spain. No commercial party having a direct financial interest in the results of the research supporting this article has or will confer a benefit on the authors or on any organization with which the authors are associated.