Objective: The objective of this study was to compare the two-minute walk test (2MWT) to the six-minute walk test (6MWT) as a measure of walking capacity in people mild-to-moderate Parkinson’s disease (PD). We further sought to investigate known-groups and construct validity of the 2MWT in this population.

Background: Subtle gait changes are common even in the early stages of PD, and these symptoms increase along the disease continuum. Assessing walking capacity is therefore imperative to monitoring disease progression and evaluating intervention efficacy. Whereas research testing protocols are generally widely encompassing, clinical assessment is strongly influenced by time constraints. It follows therefore that if the 2MWT does in fact capture walking capacity to a similar extent as the longer 6MWT, then choosing the shorter test is a better option in terms of time management.

Method: Baseline data from a randomized controlled trial (STEPS) was used to perform a cross-sectional analysis. Sixty-three people (mean age 69.2 years, 29 women) with idiopathic mild-to-moderate PD were included. An inertial wearable sensor-system was used to capture spatiotemporal gait parameters during the 2MWT and the 6MWT. Linear regression was used to analyze the association between distances walked, whereas paired samples t-test and repeated measures ANOVA explored mean differences in gait parameters.

Results: There was a very strong association between distance walked over the 2MWT and the 6MWT (R²=94.0, F=145.9, p<.001). Gait speed was however higher during the shorter test, and other speed-related parameters were also significantly different between the 2MWT and the 6MWT. Participants performed better during the first and last two minutes of the 6MWT, confirming a quadratic trend. Analyses revealed convergent (r=0.966, p<.001), discriminant and (r=0.097, p=.461) known-groups validity of the 2MWT (p<.001).

Conclusion: Our findings suggest that the 2MWT adequately captures gait capacity among people with mild-to-moderate PD. The results further demonstrate that the 2MWT has robust convergent validity and known-groups validity by being able to discriminate between people at Hoehn and Yahr stages 2 and 3.

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MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/comparison-between-the-2mwt-and-the-6mwt-as-measures-of-walking-capacity-in-parkinsons-disease/