Usual gait speed assessment in middle-aged and elderly Brazilian subjects

Objectives: To evaluate the usual gait speed of asymptomatic adult and elderly Brazilians with a 10-meter walk test and to compare the results with foreign reference values. Methods: Seventy-nine asymptomatic volunteers >= 40 years old of both genders were assessed. After anamnesis, anthropometry and the application of a habitual physical activity questionnaire, the volunteers were submitted to a 10-meter walk test at usual speed by means of which gait speed, the number of steps and length of stride were calculated. Results: Except for age, all study variables were significantly lower in women. Subjects >= 70 years old presented a significantly lower gait speed than subjects between 40 and 49 years old and between 50 and 59 in both men (1.09 +/- 0.18 m/s, 1.35 +/- 0.11 m/s and 1.34 +/- 0.22 m/s, respectively) and women (1.02 +/- 0,10 m/s, 1.27 +/- 0.20 m/s and 1.27 +/- 0,15 m/s), respectively). Gait speed showed moderate correlations with age (r=-0.41, p < 0.001) and height (r=0.35, p=0.001). After multiple regression analysis, age and gender were selected as relevant attributes of gait speed in that they explained 24.6% of this variable. The gait speed values in this study were significantly lower than foreign reference values (p < 0.05). Conclusions: The gait speed presented age-related decline and values significantly lower than those described for foreign populations. This finding indicates the need for comprehensive investigation of gait speed reference values for the Brazilian population.