How Much Data Is Enough? A Reliable Methodology To Examine Long-Term Wearable Data Acquisition In Gait And Postural Sway

Wearable sensors facilitate the evaluation of gait and balance impairment in the free-living environment, often with observation periods spanning from weeks to months, and in some cases, even years. To capture representative variability in impairment measures, data supporting the minimal duration of sensor wear is needed to balance patient burden, data quality, and study cost.

Previously, studies have used differing methodologies to examine the duration required for resolving a variety of movement variables (e.g., gait speed, sit-to-stand tests). However, only a small subset of potential measures of gait and balance impairment were observed, with postural sway measures not yet considered.

Consider this three-level framework for evaluating wear duration as one aspect of comprehensive assessments when confirming if wearable sensor-based methods are fit for purpose.