Reliability and minimal clinically important differences of gait characteristics in peripheral vestibular disorders

Sensory gait ataxia is a core feature of chronic peripheral vestibular disorders, leading to impaired mobility, reduced quality of life, and increased fall risk. Quantitative gait metrics capturing this deficit are valuable endpoints for clinical trials, yet data on their reliability and clinically meaningful change remain limited.

Clinicians using quantitative gait analysis in peripheral vestibular disorder patients can now reference study-derived reliability values and minimal clinically important difference (MCID) thresholds to interpret whether measured gait changes represent genuine clinical progress.

Establishing reliability and minimal clinically important differences for gait metrics in vestibular patients provides a measurement framework that makes objective tracking of rehabilitation outcomes more meaningful and standardised.

1. 01Study establishes test-retest reliability of quantitative gait characteristics in chronic peripheral vestibular disorder patients.
2. 02Minimal clinically important differences (MCIDs) — the smallest change that matters to a patient — are calculated for key gait metrics.
3. 03MCIDs allow clinicians to distinguish true improvement from measurement noise in rehabilitation.
4. 04Quantitative gait analysis is positioned as an objective outcome tool for vestibular rehabilitation.
5. 05Findings apply specifically to chronic peripheral vestibular disorders, not central causes.

PMID

42164129

DOI

10.3389/fneur.2026.1818995.

Journal

Frontiers in Neurology

Publication type

research_article

Evidence level

2b

Population

Patients with chronic peripheral vestibular disorders

Intervention

Quantitative gait analysis measurement and reliability assessment