We report on the use and performance of an objective measure of functional impairment, the timed up and go (TUG) test, in clinical practice for patients with lumbar degenerative disc disease (DDD). We illustrate nine representative patients with lumbar DDD, who were selected from an ongoing prospective study, to report our clinical experience with the TUG test. In addition, a preliminary sample...

Background Early detection of falls risk among older adults using simple tools may assist in fall prevention strategies. The aim of this study was to identify the best parameters associated with previous falls, either the timed up and go (TUG) test combined with sociodemographic factors and a self-rated multifactorial questionnaire (SRMQ) on falls risk or the TUG on its own. Falls risk was dete...

BACKGROUND Falling is common among older people. The Timed-Up-and-Go Test (TUG) is recommended as a screening tool for falls but its predictive value has been challenged. The objectives of this study were to examine the ability of TUG to predict future falls and to estimate the optimal cut-off point to identify those with higher risk for future falls. METHODS This is a prospective cohort stud...

The purpose of this study was to determine whether (1) mild cognitive impairment (MCI) alters the validity of the Timed Up and Go (TUG), the 8-Foot Up and Go (8UG), or the Activities-Specific Balance Confidence (ABC) scale in the identification of fallers and nonfallers and (2) there were differences in the concurrent validity between the TUG and ABC when compared with the 8UG and ABC in those ...

OBJECTIVE The objective of this study was to investigate efficacy of a whole-body vibration (WBV) intervention on functional performance of community-dwelling older adults. DESIGN The study was designed as a randomized controlled trial. SETTING The setting was in community centers. SUBJECTS There were 37 total subjects (21 women and 16 men) (age 69 +/- 8 years; mean +/- standard deviation...

Human breathing stems from automatic brainstem neural processes. It can also be operated by cortico-subcortical networks, especially when breathing becomes uncomfortable because of external or internal inspiratory loads. How the "irruption of breathing into consciousness" interacts with cognition remains unclear, but a case report in a patient with defective automatic breathing (Ondine's curse ...

The purpose of this study was to determine the sensitivity and specificity of the Timed "Up & Go" (TUG) and Dynamic Gait Index in identifying self-reported fallers among persons with vestibular dysfunction. One hundred three patient charts were included from a tertiary vestibular physical therapy practice. The patients ranged in age from 14-90 years and had vestibular diagnoses, falls reported ...

BACKGROUND Because the incremental shuttle walk test (ISWT) requires agility in its performance, we hypothesized that the test may be associated with balance and risk of falls in the elderly. OBJECTIVE To evaluate and compare the association between the performance on the ISWT, the timed up and go (TUG) and the occurrence of falls in the elderly. METHOD Thirty-three elderly individuals (68±...

AIMS The aim of this study was to establish 'Timed up and Go' test (TUG) normative data among community dwelling older adults stratified based on cognitive status, gender and age groups. METHODS A total of 2084 community dwelling older adults from wave I and II were recruited through a multistage random sampling method. TUG was performed using the standard protocol and scores were then strati...

This study aimed to determine whether the admission Timed Up and Go Test (TUG) predicted the length of stay of patients in an acute geriatric ward. Consecutive patients were quasi-randomly allocated to either a model development sample or a model validation sample. Multivariate Cox proportional hazards regression was used to model length of stay. Variables considered for inclusion in the develo...