Clinical measures are feasible and sensitive to assess balance and gait capacities in older persons with mild to moderate Intellectual Disabilities.
Standard balance tests reveal large mobility gaps in older adults with ID and are easy to run in any clinic.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Researchers tested 45 older adults with mild to moderate intellectual disability.
They used common balance tests like the Berg Balance Scale and Timed Up-and-Go.
Each person also had a same-age partner without ID for comparison.
The team wanted to see if simple clinical tools could spot balance problems in this group.
What they found
Every test showed the same story.
Adults with ID scored much worse than their peers without ID.
The Berg Balance Scale, Timed Up-and-Go, and other quick tests all picked up these big gaps.
No special lab gear was needed—just stopwatches and simple tasks.
How this fits with other research
Jantakat et al. (2015) also found the Berg Balance Scale works well, but they tested teens with cerebral palsy.
Both studies show the same tool is valid across different disabilities and ages.
Matson et al. (2008) checked the Beck Depression Inventory in older adults without ID.
Like Lotte et al., they proved a basic clinical tool can give solid data—just for mood instead of balance.
Together, these papers say you can trust simple, low-cost tests for real clinical decisions.
Why it matters
You can screen balance risk in older clients with ID using tools you already know.
No need for fancy force plates or motion labs.
If scores are low, start fall-prevention programs early.
This saves money and keeps clients safer in group homes and day programs.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Mobility limitations are common in persons with Intellectual Disabilities (ID). Differences in balance and gait capacities between persons with ID and controls have mainly been demonstrated by instrumented assessments (e.g. posturography and gait analysis), which require sophisticated and expensive equipment such as force plates or a 3D motion analysis system. Most physicians and allied healthcare professionals working with persons with ID do not have such equipment at their disposal, so they must rely on clinical tests to determine whether balance and gait are affected. The aim of this study was to investigate whether existing clinical balance and gait tests are feasible in older persons with mild to moderate ID and to examine whether these tests are able to show limitations in balance and gait capacities in the ID population compared to age-matched peers in the general population. Furthermore, it was aimed to identify the most important determinants of balance and gait disability in persons with the ID. A total of 76 older persons with mild to moderate ID (43 male, mean age 63.1 ± 7.6 years) and 20 healthy controls (14 male, mean age 62.2 ± 5.6 years) participated. Balance and gait abilities were assessed with the Berg Balance Scale (BBS), the Functional Reach test (FR), the Timed Up and Go Test (TUGT), the timed Single Leg Stance (SLS) and the Ten Metre Walking Test (TMWT). Our study showed that it is feasible to conduct standard clinical balance and gait tests in older persons with mild to moderate ID. Balance and gait performance of persons with ID is substantially worse compared to older persons of the general population. Age, number of co-morbidities, Body Mass Index (BMI), body sway and fear of falling are associated with balance and gait performance in persons with ID. These factors might help in the selection of subjects to be monitored on their balance and gait capacities.
Research in developmental disabilities, 2013 · doi:10.1016/j.ridd.2012.08.014