An abstract entitled “Does Variation Between Timed Up and Go (TUG) and TUG-Cognitive Correlate with MABC Scores: A Pilot Study” by M. Coehlo-Pfizer, S. Correia, B. Gordon, and M. Frazier was not included with the abstracts published in the October 2023 issue.

The abstract is provided below.

DOES VARIATION BETWEEN TIMED UP AND GO (TUG) AND TUG-COGNITIVE CORRELATE WITH MABC SCORES: A PILOT STUDY

Marcos Coehlo-Pfizer PT, DPT, Shaun Correia DPT, Ben Gordon PT, DPT, Megan Frazier PT, DPT, PCS

INTRODUCTION: The purpose of this study was to compare the difference between scores on the Timed Up and Go (TUG) and Timed Up and Go-Cognitive (TUG-COG) with scores on the Movement Assessment Battery for Children 2nd edition (MABC-2) in children ages 7-10 years old. The research hypothesis was that a correlation would be identified between higher scores on the MABC and lower time difference on the TUG tasks and the null hypothesis was that no correlation would be found between these outcome measures.

MATERIALS/METHODS: Eight children between the ages of 7-10 with and without suspected coordination deficits were recruited through social media to participate in this study. Exclusion criteria included severe communication deficit and injury or disability preventing walking. Participants were tested with the Movement Assessment Battery for Children 2nd edition (MABC-2), the Timed Up and Go (TUG), and the Timed Up and Go - Cognitive (TUG-COG) using backwards counting from 30. Subjective measures included the Checklist from the MABC-2 and the PROMIS Pediatric Item Bank v2.0. MABC-2 scores were plotted against the difference between TUG and TUG-COG scores, and a line of best fit was applied using a Pearson correlation.

RESULTS:

PARTICIPANTS: The mean age was 8 years and 5 months ± 1 year 1.5 months, and the mean PROMIS score was 39.6 ± .5. The mean height was 50.7” ± 2, and the mean weight was 64.6 ± 18, though the weight was not collected for one subject.

MABC-2: The mean MABC manual dexterity percentile score was 23.3 ± 17. The mean MABC aiming and catching percentile score was 68 ± 22. The mean MABC balance percentile score was 73 ± 28. The mean MABC-2 total score was 52.3 ± 21.7.

MABC-2 CHECKLIST: The mean checklist score was 0.6 with a standard deviation of 1, with an outlier of 21 that corresponded to the participant that scored in the amber zone for the motor tests. Every child that scored in the green section of the MABC-2 Checklist also scored in the green zone according to their final MABC-2 percentile score. The only child to score in the red zone for the checklist scored in the amber zone for their final MABC-2 percentile score.

TUG AND TUG-COG: After the mean scores were calculated, the difference (ΔTUG) between the TUG and TUG-COG were calculated. Most participants (n=6) took longer to perform the TUG-COG than the TUG, while two participants were faster during the TUG-COG. The mean TUG time was 6.3 s ± .6 s. The mean TUGcog time was 7.7 s ± .9 s. The mean ΔTUG was 1.4 ± 1.3. Although the standard deviation for each individual test was low, the change in TUG demonstrated a large standard deviation as a result the small sample size with two participants who performed the TUG-COG more quickly than the TUG, resulting in two negative ΔTUG scores.

MABC-2 COMPARED TO Δ TUG: A line of best fit was applied to the plot comparing MABC-2 scores with Δ TUG using a Pearson correlation value of -0.76 (p = 0.028).

CONCLUSION: These findings may suggest that balance and coordination deficits may correlate with dual-task performance. This pilot study was performed to examine the feasibility of comparing the MABC-2 with differences between the TUG and TUG-COG. We found a statistically significant negative correlation between the MABC-2 and Δ TUG, suggesting that a child who scores high on the MABC-2 (therefore demonstrating a high degree of coordination), will have an easier time with dual-task performance on the TUG-COG. One child in the study scored low on the MABC-2, (amber zone) and presented with a significantly larger difference in the TUG and TUGcog scores, suggesting greater dual task challenges.

CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Finding a correlation between the MABC-2 and Δ TUG may allow for use of the TUG and TUG-COG as quick screening tools in pediatric physical therapy settings to determine whether further coordination and balance testing is indicated. Understanding the link between dual task performance and coordination and balance deficits is an important step toward identifying and optimizing physical therapy services for children with coordination deficits such as Developmental Coordination Disorder. Additional testing of children with coordination deficits is recommended with a larger sample size to establish significance with this finding.

Abstracts of Platform Presentations for the Academy of Pediatric Physical Therapy Annual Conference 2023. Pediatric Physical Therapy. doi: 10.1097/PEP.0000000000001056