Retest reliability of dynamic balance during standing in older people after surgical treatment of hip fracture

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Computerized force platform systems are becoming more widely used in clinical practice to measure balance control; however, their retest reliability has not been documented in people with hip fracture. The present study examined the retest reliability of dynamic weight shift during standing in older people after surgical treatment of hip fractures. METHOD: This single group test-retest research design employed a computerized force platform system (the Neurocom Pro-Balance Master; PBM) to measure the amplitude and symmetry of weight shift in 14 patients with unilateral hip fracture on three test occasions held one hour and 24 hours apart. Subjects performed six trials of a forward-backward and side-to-side weight shift task at each test session. RESULTS: The results showed that reliability was, at best, moderate for forward-backward and side-to-side weight shift measures taken over an hour and over a day. CONCLUSIONS: Clinicians should be cautious when using the computerized balance assessment procedures investigated in this study to assess change in dynamic balance ability in older people during the early stages of rehabilitation after surgical treatment of hip fractures.