A comparison between the Static Balance Test and the Berg Balance Scale: validity, reliability, and comparative resource use

Objective: Within a sample of acute post-stroke patients, to compare the score on the Berg Balance Scale and the Static Balance Test for validity, inter-rater reliability, and the expenditure of time. Design: Prospective, intra-individual, cross-sectional evaluation study. Setting: Acute stroke unit of a university hospital in Germany. Participants: A total of 53 patients with acute stroke who did not have other pathology affecting their balance. Main outcome measure: For intra-individual comparisons of the Berg Balance Scale and the Static Balance Test, Pearson correlation coefficients were calculated. For inter-rater reliability, Bland Altman plots were drawn and the corresponding mean difference and limits of agreement were calculated. Results: The Static Balance Test took three to five minutes; the Berg Balance Scale 20-30 minutes. There was a high correlation between the scores on the Berg Balance Scale and the Static Balance Test (r=0.91). For the Berg Balance Scale, the mean difference between the two raters was 0.13 and the limits of agreement were small (-0.25; 0.51). For the Static Balance Test, the mean difference between the two raters was -0.02 and also the limits of agreement (-0.06; 0.02) were even smaller than for the Berg Balance Scale. Both scales showed excellent inter-rater reliability. Conclusion: The Static Balance Test was compared with the Berg Balance Scale and turned out to be equally valid, more reliable, and takes much less time. For the moment, the scale can be recommended for the use in acute stroke care, especially for the daily routine therapy.