I'm looking to get a better sense of whether gait speed is mostly used as a research tool, or if people are using it in medical practice, based on real experiences. My initial research seems to indicate that it's indeed a research tool, but it seems it is also used in cardiology/thoracic surgery to assess post-operative risk.
What have been your experiences with gait speed? How are you currently measuring it? (Any relevant references or links are also greatly appreciated!)
Thank you Rodolfo Vega Candelario
!To measure the gait speed, are you using a clock/stopwatch? Or do you have specialized equipment to help you measure it?
This article gives many references about using gait speed to monitor functional status in clinical settings
Article Walking Speed: The Functional Vital Sign
Hi Samantha Latremouille , in our working reality we use the gait speed both in clinical practice and as research tool.
I work with elderly outpatients, and we use gait speed as an indicator of physical function, in order to help us to discriminate frail people vs not frail people: in this area we usually use a stopwatch, for practical reasons.
In the research field, when it's possible, we use the GAITRite system, one of the most reliable and precise instruments for measuring gait parameters, including gait speed.
The stopwatch is the most easy to use tool, but you have to pay attention to the differences between operators.
I hope I have been helpful!
Yari
It is simple, reliable but forgotten method to predict frailty. Just you need to know distance and Stopwatch
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