Test-retest reliability of six minute walk test in spastic ambulatory children with cerebral palsy

Background: The Six Minute Walk Test (6MWT) can provide valuable clinical information regarding gait abilities as well as can give an idea about functional ability and outcome in individuals. However, little information available on 6MWT used in cerebral palsy. Hence the purpose of present study was to assess the test-retest reliability of 6MWT in children with ambulatory spastic cerebral palsy. Methods: It was a cross sectional observational study conducted in paediatric neurorehabilitation department of a physiotherapy college, with convenient sample of 18 children with cerebral palsy of 4 - 14 years of age, with GMFCS level I to III. Subject performed 6MWT twice under controlled conditions with 30 minutes rest in between the tests. Results: Test-retest reliability was analyzed using the distance walked during first and the second sections. The documented data were analyzed for test-retest reliability by using spearman correlation test and it was highly reliable (r = 0.955 and P < 0.0001). Conclusion: The six minute walk test is highly reliable to be used in children with spastic ambulatory cerebral palsy, as an outcome measure.