Backward Walking as a Marker of Mobility and Disability in Multiple Sclerosis: A Cross-Sectional Analysis
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Methods
2.1. Participants
2.2. Procedures
2.3. Data Collection
2.4. Statistical Analysis
3. Results
4. Discussion
5. Conclusions
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Data Availability Statement
Conflicts of Interest
References
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Variable | Mean ± SD | Median (Min–Max) | n (%) |
---|---|---|---|
Sex | |||
Female | 98 (76) | ||
Male | 31 (24) | ||
Age at last visit (years) | 38 ± 11 | 38 (19–66) | |
BMI (kg/m2) | 24.6 ± 4.5 | 24 (15.4–41.6) | |
Current smoker | 44 (34.1) | ||
Former smoker | 14 (10.9) | ||
Never | 71 (55) | ||
MS Disease Duration (years) | 7.4 ± 6 | 6 (1–25) | |
Age at First Attack (years) | 29.1 ± 9.1 | 27 (13–55) | |
RRMS | 112 (86.8) | ||
PPMS | 10 (7.8) | ||
SPMS | 7 (5.4) | ||
Initial MS Presentation | |||
Polysymptomatic | 54 (41.9) | ||
Monosymptomatic | 75 (58.1) | ||
Treatment Type | |||
Low Efficacy | 58 (44.9) | ||
High Efficacy | 69 (53.4) | ||
Total Number of Attacks | 2.3 ± 1.7 | 2 (0–8) | |
EDSS at Diagnosis | 1.9 ± 1.3 | 1 (0–6) | |
Current EDSS | 2 ± 1.4 | 1.5 (0–6) | |
Comorbidities | 30 (23.3) | ||
9HPT (Dominant Hand) (s) | 19.9 ± 5.6 | 18.8 (5.4–53.7) | |
9HPT (Non-Dominant Hand)(s) | 21.6 ± 6.4 | 20.5 (10.8–67.5) | |
SDMT Correct Responses | 40.4 ± 14.4 | 42 (5–77) | |
Forward T25FW (s) | 5.9 ± 3 | 5.2 (3.7–32.5) | |
Backward T25FW (s) | 10.4 ± 6.5 | 8.6 (4.4–50) | |
MS Quality of Life Score | 37.8 ± 23.1 | 30 (0–100) | |
VAS Fatigue Score | 4.8 ± 2.4 | 5 (0–10) | |
Prognostic Score | 3.2 ± 1.5 | 3 (0–7) | |
Good Prognosis | 107 (82.9) | ||
Poor Prognosis | 22 (17.1) | ||
T2 Lesion Count (Initial MRI) | 11.5 ± 5.4 | 10 (2–30) | |
Gadolinium-Enhancing Lesions | 43 (33.3) | ||
Presence of Cervical Lesions | 51 (39.5) | ||
Upper Cervical Lesions (C1–C4) | 41 (46.1) |
Clinical Feature | Forward Walking Test | Backward Walking Test | |
---|---|---|---|
EDSS at Diagnosis | r | 0.407 | 0.345 |
p | <0.001 | <0.001 | |
Current EDSS | r | 0.526 | 0.469 |
p | <0.001 | <0.001 | |
Nine-Hole Peg Test (Dominant Hand) | r | 0.609 | 0.452 |
p | <0.001 | <0.001 | |
Nine-Hole Peg Test (Non-Dominant Hand) | r | 0.568 | 0.410 |
p | <0.001 | <0.001 | |
SDMT Correct Responses | r | −0.427 | −0.427 |
p | <0.001 | <0.001 | |
SDMT Total Responses | r | −0.425 | −0.425 |
p | <0.001 | <0.001 | |
MS Quality of Life Score | r | 0.404 | 0.337 |
p | <0.001 | <0.001 | |
VAS Fatigue Score | r | 0.390 | 0.286 |
p | <0.001 | 0.001 | |
Prognostic Score | r | 0.298 | 0.117 |
p | 0.001 | 0.186 | |
Disease Duration | r | 0.153 | 0.245 |
p | 0.084 | 0.005 |
Risk Factor | AUC (95% CI) | Cut-Off | p-Value | Sensitivity (%) | Specificity (%) | PPV (%) | NPV (%) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Clinic Form | |||||||
25-Foot Walk (Forward) | 0.857 (0.739–0.975) | >5.70 | <0.001 | 88.2 | 75 | 34.9 | 97.7 |
25-Foot Walk (Backward) | 0.832 (0.705–0.959) | >11.11 | <0.001 | 76.5 | 84.8 | 43.3 | 96 |
Prognosis Measurement | |||||||
25-Foot Walk (Forward) | 0.703 (0.587–0.818) | >5.50 | 0.001 | 68.2 | 68.2 | 30.6 | 91.3 |
25-Foot Walk (Backward) | 0.670 (0.547–0.792) | >11.80 | 0.007 | 45.5 | 87.9 | 43.5 | 88.7 |
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Seferoğlu, M.; Tunç, A.; Sıvacı, A.Ö.; Öncel, S.; Düztaban, T.; Dikilitaş, H.; Görgül, A.S.; Öztürkci, M.F. Backward Walking as a Marker of Mobility and Disability in Multiple Sclerosis: A Cross-Sectional Analysis. Diagnostics 2025, 15, 936. https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics15070936
Seferoğlu M, Tunç A, Sıvacı AÖ, Öncel S, Düztaban T, Dikilitaş H, Görgül AS, Öztürkci MF. Backward Walking as a Marker of Mobility and Disability in Multiple Sclerosis: A Cross-Sectional Analysis. Diagnostics. 2025; 15(7):936. https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics15070936
Chicago/Turabian StyleSeferoğlu, Meral, Abdulkadir Tunç, Ali Özhan Sıvacı, Samed Öncel, Tuğba Düztaban, Hamide Dikilitaş, Abdul Samed Görgül, and Muhammed Furkan Öztürkci. 2025. "Backward Walking as a Marker of Mobility and Disability in Multiple Sclerosis: A Cross-Sectional Analysis" Diagnostics 15, no. 7: 936. https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics15070936
APA StyleSeferoğlu, M., Tunç, A., Sıvacı, A. Ö., Öncel, S., Düztaban, T., Dikilitaş, H., Görgül, A. S., & Öztürkci, M. F. (2025). Backward Walking as a Marker of Mobility and Disability in Multiple Sclerosis: A Cross-Sectional Analysis. Diagnostics, 15(7), 936. https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics15070936