Background: The Berg Balance Scale (BBS) and the Fullerton Advanced Balance (FAB) scale have been used to assess balance function in patients with chronic stroke. These clinical balance scales provide information about potential risk factors for falls. Objects: The purpose of this study was to investigate the incidence of and risk factors of falls and compare the predictive values of the BBS and FAB scale relative to fall risk in patients with stroke through receiver operating characteristic analysis. Methods: Sixty-three patients with stroke (faller=34, non-faller=29) who could walk independently for 10 meters participated in this study. The BBS and FAB scale were administered. Then, we verified the cut-off score, sensitivity, specificity, and the area of under the curve. Results: In this study, the BBS and FAB scale did not predict fall risk in patients with stroke in the receiver operator characteristic curve analysis. A cut-off score of 37.5 points provided sensitivity of .47 and specificity of .35 on the BBS, and a cut-off score of 20.5 points provided sensitivity of .44 and specificity of .45 on the FAB scale. Conclusion: The BBS and FAB scale were not useful screening tools for predicting fall risk in patients with stroke in this study, but tho

Falls are common after stroke and most frequently related to loss of balance while walking. Consequently, preventing falls is one of the goals of acute, rehabilitative, and chronic stroke care. The purpose of this study was to investigate the incidence and risk factors of falls and to determine how well the Falls Efficacy Scale (FES), Timed Up and Go test (TUG), and Berg Balance Scale (BBS) could distinguish between fallers and non-fallers among stroke patients during inpatient rehabilitation. One hundred and fifteen participants with at least 3 months post-stroke and able to walk at least 3 m with or without a mono cane participated in this study. Fifty-four (47%) participants reported falling, and 15(27.8%) had a recurrent fall. Logistic regression analysis for predicting falls showed that left hemiplegia [odds ratio (OR)=4.68] and fear of falling (OR=5.99) were strong risk factors for falls. Fallers performed worse than non-fallers on the FES, TUG, and BBS (p<.05, p<.01, respectively). In the receiver operator characteristic curve analysis, the TUG demonstrated the best discriminating ability among the three assessment tools. The cut-off score was 22 seconds on the TUG for discriminating fallers from non-fallers (sensitivity=88.9%, specificity=45.9%) and 27 seconds for discriminating recurrent fallers from single fallers and non-fallers (sensitivity=71.4%, specificity=40.2%). Results suggest that there is a need for providing fall prevention and injury minimization programs for stroke patients who record over 22 seconds on the TUG.

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship of the Stroke Rehabilitation Assessment of Movement (STREAM), the Berg Balance Scale (BBS), and the Modified Barthel Index (MBI) in the acute stroke care setting. Twenty patients with their first stroke were evaluated using STREAM, BBS, and MBI initially and at 4 weeks. The data was analyzed using the independent t-test, paired t-test, and the Pearson product moment correlation analysis. The scores on the STREAM were strongly associated with the scores on both the BBS and MBI (with Pearson correlation coefficients ranging from .88 to .95), and there was significant improvement between the initial scores and those obtained four weeks later for STREAM, BBS, and MBI (p=.001, p=.001, p<.001). The results suggest that STREAM may be able to reflect functional recovery and to assess voluntary movement in patients who have suffered an acute stroke.

Balance is a complex motor skill that depends on interactions between multiple sensorimotor processes and environmental and functional contexts. Many rehabilitation specialists believe that balance assessment under multitask conditions may be a more sensitive indicator of balance problems and falls than balance assessment in a single-task context. Functional Gait Assessment has many tasks that allow for testing under multitask conditions. The purpose of this study was to determine the concurrent validity between the Functional Gait Assessment (FGA), Berg Balance Scale (BBS), and Timed "Up & Go" Test (TUG) in patients with stroke. One hundred and five participants with at least 3 months post stroke and able to walk at least 6 m with or without a mono cane, participated in this study. Concurrent validity between the FGA, BBS, and TUG was assessed using Spearman rank order correlation. The FGA correlated with the BBS (r=.80, p<.01) and TUG (r=-.77, p<.01). The good and moderate correlation between the FGA, BBS, and TUG establishes the concurrent validity of the FGA in patients with stroke. These measures provide clinicians with valuable information about patients' functional balance capabilities.

목적 : 뇌졸중 환자를 대상으로 4점 척도인 뇌졸중 자세 평가 척도(Postural Assessment Scale for Stroke: PASS) 와 5점 척도인 버그 균형 척도(Berg Balance Scale, BBS)를 3점 척도로 단순화시켜 원본 PASS, BBS와 특성을 비교하고 신뢰도 및 타당도를 알아보고자 하였다. 연구방법 : 만성뇌졸중 환자 62명을 대상으로 PASS(0-1-2-3)는 PASS-3Level(0-1.5-3)로 BBS( 0-1-2- 3-4)는 BBS-3Level(0-2-4)로 기록하여 비교하였다. PASS-3L과 BBS-3L 평가의 측정자내·측정자간 신 뢰도는 급간내 상관계수를(ICC3,1), 절대적 신뢰도는 표준 오차 측정(Standard Error Measurement: SEM)과 최 저 실제 차이(Small Reference Differences: SRD)를 이용하였고, 내적 일치도를 알아보기 위하여 Cronbach’s α 계수를 구하였다. PASS(PASS-3L), BBS(BBS-3L)의 동시 타당도와 수정된 바델 지수(Modified Barthel Index, MBI)와 퓨글 마이어 운동(Fugl Meyer-Motor: FM-M)과의 수렴 타당도를 알아보기 위하여 피어슨 상관 분석을 하였다. 결과 : PASS-3L과 BBS-3L의 검사 재검사 신뢰도는 각각 ICC = .96, .96, 측정자간 신뢰도는 각각 ICC = .95, .94이었다. PASS-3L과 BBS-3L의 SEM은 각각 .99, 1.55, SRD는 1.74, 4.30, Cronbach's α계수는 .77, .85로 신뢰도가 높게 나타났다. PASS-3L의 동시 타당도는 PASS(r=.93), BBS(r=.75), BBS-3L(r=.80)과 유의한 관 련이 있었고, BBS-3L은 PASS(r=.80)와 BBS(r=.93)와 유의한 상관관계가 있었다(p<.01). PASS-3L의 수렴 타당도는 MBI(r=.60), FM-M(r=.42)과 유의한 관련이 있었고, BBS-3L은 MBI(r=.79), FM-M(r=.48)와 유 의한 상관관계가 있었다(p<.01). 결론 : 2개의 단순화된 PASS-3L과 BBS-3L은 PASS, BBS와 비교하여 매우 높은 신뢰도와 타당도를 보여 뇌졸 중 환자의 균형을 평가하는데 적합하다고 할 수 있다.

The purposes of this study were to provide the basic data and investigate the reliability of functional reach test and identify correlation of Berg balance scale (BBS) and functional reach test (FRT). The subjects were twenty healthy young adults and forty-five over 65 years old in order to compare balance ability. These data were analyzed by independent t-test and Pearson's correlation test using SPSS WIN 10.0. The results were as follows. Intrarater reliability coefficients of FRT was .976 and interrater was .942. FRT was significantly correlated with age, height, and BBS (p<.05). There were no significant differences in FRT and BBS by sex. There was significant difference in reach distance between below 74 elderly and above in FRT. FRT is very reliable test for balance and significantly correlated with BBS. Therefore, it is suggested that FRT is a clinically useful tool to substitute for BBS measuring balance ability in the elderly.

This study was designed to examine, using Rasch analysis, the rating scale performance of the Korean version of the Berg Balance Scale (BBS). The subjects were 95 elderly people at community dwelling. Subjects (19 men, 76 women) ranged in age from 65 to 91 years. Rasch analysis was then done by means of the Winsteps program to determine the validity and reliability of the Korean version of the BBS evaluation tools for elderly people. The results were as follows: Twenty-one elderly people were excluded for misfit persons. Three items were found to be misfits and the order of item difficulty of the remaining 11 items was arranged. Elderly people BBS ability is indicated by -.94~7.41 logit, and the transformation formula is score=(logit score+.94)/. This transformation formula can be applied to Korean elderly people for balance ability. In the order of difficulty of evaluation items, the most difficult item was "Standing on one foot" and the easiest item was "Standing to Sitting". In conclusion, the Korean version of BBS evaluation tool for the elderly people has been proved valid and will be useful in clinical practice and research in Korea.

This study aims to compare the relationship between the Berg Balance Scale (BBS) scores, Timed Up & Go (TUG), Functional Independent Measure (FIM), and subject characteristics. All of the 18 subjects were women between the ages of 68 and 91 (mean=80.2, SD=5.43), and they all lived at the nursing home in Wonju. Balance was measured using BBS, and functional mobility was measured using TUG. FIM was used to evaluate functional independence. Data were analyzed using Spearman correlation. Statistically significant differences were noted between BBS and TUG (r=-.486, p<.05). There were no significant statistical differences between total FIM and BBS, TUG. The FIM items "locomotion" and "communication" showed significant statistical differences between BBS and TUG. The results suggest that FIM may be able to predict dangerous falls in elderly people.

This study examined the correlations among the Berg Balance Scale, which is a clinical tool used to evaluate balance ability, spatiotemporal parameters of gait, and falling; determined the parameters most closely related to falling; and identified a discriminatory parameter and its predictability. Thirty-four subjects aged 72 to 92 years participated in this study. Following a questionnaire survey about falling, the Berg Balance Scale and spatiotemporal parameters of gait were measured. The results revealed that the incidence of falls increased with aging and an accompanying reduction in the flexion range of motion of the hip joint. The gait characteristics of elderly people who fell easily included a slower walking speed, shorter stride, and longer stance time than other elderly. When the cutoff score was set at 45, the Berg Balance Scale was able to identify correctly those individuals who truly have experience of falling than when the cutoff score was set at 39. But when the cutoff score was set at 39, the scale's specificity identifying correctly those individuals who truly have not experience of falling was higher than at the cutoff score of 45. Therefore, the Berg Balance Scale is an appropriate screening method in a clinical setting for the early detection of elderly people at risk of falling. In conclusion, elderly people with a Berg Balance Scale score. below 45 are the most likely to fall owing to their decreased balance ability.