Assessment of Objective Ambulation in Lower Extremity Sarcoma Patients with a Continuous Activity Monitor: Rationale and Validation

[摘要] In addition to patient reported outcome measures, accelerometers may provide useful information on the outcome of sarcoma patients treated with limb salvage. The StepWatch (SW) Activity Monitor (SAM) is a two-dimensional accelerometer worn on the ankle that records an objective measure of walking performance. The purpose of this study was to validate the SW in a cross-sectional population of adult patients with lower extremity sarcoma treated with limb salvage.The main outcome was correlation of total steps with the Toronto Extremity Salvage Score (TESS).In a sample of 29 patients, a mean of 12 days of SW data was collected per patient (range 6–16), with 2767 average total steps (S.D. 1867; range 406–7437).There was a moderate positive correlation between total steps and TESS(r=0.56,  P=0.002). Patients with osseous tumors walked significantly less than those with soft tissue sarcoma (1882 versus 3715,P<0.01).This study supports the validity of the SAM as an activity monitor for the objective assessment of real world physical function in sarcoma patients.

[学科分类] 肿瘤学