Kinect V2-Based Gait Analysis for Children with Cerebral Palsy: Validity and Reliability of Spatial Margin of Stability and Spatiotemporal Variables

Children with cerebral palsy (CP) have high risks of falling. It is necessary to evaluate gait stability for children with CP. In comparison to traditional motion capture techniques, the Kinect has the potential to be utilised as a cost-effective gait stability assessment tool, ensuring frequent and uninterrupted gait monitoring. To evaluate the validity and reliability of this measurement, in this study, ten children with CP performed two testing sessions, of which gait data were recorded by a Kinect V2 sensor and a referential Motion Analysis system. The margin of stability (MOS) and gait spatiotemporal metrics were examined. For the spatiotemporal parameters, intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC2,k) values were from 0.83 to 0.99 between two devices and from 0.78 to 0.88 between two testing sessions. For the MOS outcomes, ICC2,k values ranged from 0.42 to 0.99 between two devices and 0.28 to 0.69 between two test sessions. The Kinect V2 was able to provide valid and reliable spatiotemporal gait parameters, and it could also offer accurate outcome measures for the minimum MOS. The reliability of the Kinect V2 when assessing time-specific MOS variables was limited. The Kinect V2 shows the potential to be used as a cost-effective tool for CP gait stability assessment.

Automated summary

The study found that Kinect V2 can provide valid and reliable spatiotemporal gait parameters, and accurate outcome measures for the minimum MOS. However, the reliability of Kinect V2 is limited when assessing time-specific MOS variables.