Do Performance-Based Wheelchair Propulsion Tests Detect Changes Among Manual Wheelchair Users With Spinal Cord Injury During Inpatient Rehabilitation in Quebec?

ObjectiveTo quantify and compare the responsiveness and concurrent validity of 3 performance-based manual wheelchair propulsion tests among manual wheelchair users with subacute spinal cord injury (SCI) undergoing inpatient rehabilitation.DesignQuasi-experimental repeated-measures design.SettingPublicly funded comprehensive inpatient SCI rehabilitation program.ParticipantsConsenting adult manual wheelchair users with a subacute SCI admitted and discharged from inpatient rehabilitation (N=14).InterventionParticipants performed 20-m propulsion at both self-selected natural and maximal speeds, the slalom, and the 6-minute propulsion tests at rehabilitation admission and discharge.Main Outcome MeasuresTime required to complete the performance-based wheelchair propulsion tests. Standardized response means (SRMs) were computed for each performance test and Pearson correlation coefficients (r) were calculated to explore the associations between performance tests.ResultsThe slalom (SRM=1.24), 20-m propulsion at maximum speed (SRM=.99), and 6-minute propulsion tests (SRM=.84) were the most responsive. The slalom and 20-m propulsion at maximum speed were strongly correlated at both admission (r=.93) and discharge (r=.92).ConclusionsThe slalom and 6-minute propulsion tests best document wheelchair propulsion performance change over the course of inpatient rehabilitation. Adding the 20-m propulsion test performed at maximal speed provides a complementary description of performance change.