Reliability and validity of daily physical activity measures during inpatient spinal cord injury rehabilitation

This study focuses on measuring physical activity in people with spinal cord injuries during their inpatient rehabilitation. It's important because physical activity can help improve recovery and prevent secondary complications. The researchers used wrist accelerometers, hip accelerometers (for those who could walk), and a self-report questionnaire to track daily physical activity. The study found that wrist and hip accelerometers are reliable tools for research but might not be accurate enough for individual use.

• 1
  Physical activity measures showed moderate to high correlations between Day 1 and Day 2 (ρ = 0.53–0.89), indicating good test-retest reliability.
• 2
  Wrist accelerometry counts correlated moderately with grip strength (ρ = 0.58), and step counts correlated moderately with measures of ambulation (ρ = 0.62).
• 3
  Functional independence was related to wrist accelerometry (ρ = 0.70) and step counts (ρ = 0.56), but not with self-report, suggesting that objective measures are better indicators of functional ability.