Abstract
Background: The 2-minute step test (2MST) evaluates aerobic endurance in patients with Parkinson's disease and can act as a dual test that also evaluates balance. The aim of this study was to observe how the 2MST behaves in the different Hoehn & Yahr stages of patients with Parkinson's disease and ascertain whether this test can be used to assess the degree of balance presented by patients with Parkinson's disease.
Methods: A total of 91 people with Parkinson's disease were studied using the 2MST, 8-Foot Up-and-Go, and 6-minute walk test.
Results: The Pearson correlation was performed between the 2-MST and the other 2 tests (8-Foot Up-and-Go and 6-minute walk test). A significant correlation was observed for the 2MST and the 8-Foot-Up-and-Go, which increased as the disease stage advanced, but the 6-minute walk test showed a significant correlation for Hoehn & Yahr stages I and II.
Conclusion: We suggest that the 2MST assess both aerobic endurance and dynamic balance in patients with Parkinson's disease with Hoehn & Yahr stages I and II but that it be used to assess balance in stages III and IV.