Reliability and validity of the L test in participants with chronic stroke

Objective Many clinical mobility tests have been used for individuals who have suffered a stroke; however, the ceiling effect has been identified as a limitation for relatively high functioning individuals. The L test, a variation of the timed up and go test (TUG), was developed as a mobility test for patients after amputation. The objective of this study was to examine the reliability and validity of the L test among patients following a stroke. Design Cross-sectional. Setting Rehabilitation hospital. Participants Thirty-three chronic stroke survivors {20 males and 13 females, mean age 52.4 [standard deviation (SD) 11.2] years; mean time since stroke 29.1 (SD 13.3) months}. Intervention Not applicable. Main outcome measures Validity was assessed by correlating the L test with other mobility tests (TUG, 10-m walk test and 2-minute walk test). Intra-class correlation coefficients (ICCs) were used to investigate reliability. The minimal detectable change (MDC) was used to determine true change. Results The L test was strongly correlated with the TUG test (r = 0.887), and had excellent intra-rater (ICC3,1 = 0.99) and inter-rater reliability (ICC2,1 = 0.99). The MDC with a 95% confidence interval was 4 seconds. Conclusions The L test is a reliable, valid tool for evaluating gait in patients following a stroke. It is a more applicable method to assess individuals who are able to walk greater distances and have better gait in more functional situations. (C) 2014 Chartered Society of Physiotherapy. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.