Feasibility of the Target Aerobic Movement Test in Children and Adolescents with Spina Bifida
in Adapted Physical Activity QuarterlyClick name to view affiliation
The purpose of this study was to determine the feasibility of the Target Aerobic Movement Test (TAMT)1 in a group of children and adolescents with spina bifida (n = 32). Thirty-two children (11 subjects-thoracic lesion, 21 subjects-lumbar lesion) volunteered for the study. Results indicated there were no significant differences in the proportion of subjects who passed Test 1 or Test 2 (p > .05). Twenty-seven out of 28 eligible subjects (96%) on Test 1 and 25 of 27 eligible subjects (93%) on Test 2 met the criteria for successful completion of the TAMT. The TAMT appears to be a reliable and feasible test for measuring aerobic behavior in children and adolescents with spina bifida. Future research should focus on studying the feasibility of the TAMT with other populations with disabilities and to also determine if the test can become a more refined discriminator of aerobic behavior and aerobic capacity.
James H. Rimmer is with the Department of Physical Education at Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL 60115. Fiona Connor-Kuntz is with the Cleveland Heights-University Heights City School District, University Heights, OH 44118-3397. Joseph P. Winnick and Francis X. Short both are with the Department of Physical Education and Sport at the State University of New York College at Brockport, Brockport, NY 14420.
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