The Timed Up and Go (TUG) test is a simple and commonly used test for evaluating the balance function and walking ability. The test is commonly conducted on the elderly and patients with gait disorders due to neurological or non-neurological diseases.
In the test, a subject rises from a chair, walks three meters, turns around 180 degrees, walks back to the chair, and sits down again while turning 180 degrees.
Traditionally, A clinician watches the patient performing the test and measures the completion time using a stopwatch. The start time and end time are subject to observer bias and error, and no other objective measurements are being recorded.
TUG test on your mobile device
Montfort has demonstrated that the smartphones’ integral sensors have sufficient reliability and validity for evaluation of kinematic tests. By using a smartphone, we can conduct the TUG test more accurately. Moreover, testing using the app provides more information and potentially discriminates among different clinical conditions. In addition, the patient can take the test remotely according to their physician’s instructions. The extracted and analyzed data is then available online to the physician. The ability to monitor patients remotely has been especially useful during COVID-19.
Available data exrtacted after using the app:
As well as accurate completion time, using our app for instrumented TUG provides you with additional biomarkers such as:
- Temporal breakdown: Sit-to-stand time, Rotation (turning) time, Sit down time (with the turning).
- Gait analysis: Steps cadence, step length, step-to-step variability and sway.
If you would like to hear more about our app capabilities, please feel free to contact us.
