Katharina Stibrant Sunnerhagen, Belinda Brown, Christine E. Kasper
^A1 Department of Rehabilitation Medicine University of Göteborg Sweden
^A2 Department of Physical Therapy Winston-Salem State College NC USA
^A3 Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing Baltimore MD USA

DOI: 10.1080/16501970306130

Objective: The aim of the study was to evaluate the reliability of two clinical tests of mobility for stroke patients. Design: The study took place in a university hospital with a case control design. Subjects: A sample of convenience including 31 subjects: a group of patients with prior stroke (n = 19); a control group (n = 12). Methods: The time(s) for sitting up from a supine position and transferring from an examination table to a chair were measured and inter- and intra-rater reliability were assessed. The source of variation in the test results as well as intra-class correlations were estimated. Results: The largest source of variation in the supine position was between subjects, and the between-tester variability was very low, with similar results for the transfer from table to chair. The intra-class correlations are all high (range 0. 77-0. 98). This indicates that it is of little importance which tester is performing the tests. Conclusion: Sitting up on an examination table and transferring from an examination table to a chair seem to be reliable timed clinical tests of mobility in stroke research.