Clark, Natasha
(2022)
Validation of a New Owner-Reported Mobility Tool (“GenPup-M”) Using Veterinary Clinical Examination and Quantitative Gait Analysis.
Master of Philosophy thesis, University of Liverpool.
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Abstract
This Masters study aimed to validate a new owner-reported canine mobility questionnaire (“GenPup-M”) using veterinary examination, a previously validated owner-reported questionnaire and quantitative gait analysis in dogs with/without mobility impairments. Sixty-two family-owned dogs (31 with mobility impairments) were recruited for this study. GenPup-M responses were compared against the validated Liverpool Osteoarthritis in Dogs (LOAD) questionnaire, kinetic and kinematic gait analysis, and a validated veterinary clinical examination using Spearman’s rank correlations to test criterion and construct validity. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was used to identify if one or more question components could predict the absence/presence of mobility impairments. Cronbach's α was used to test the internal consistency of GenPup-M and was found to be “good” (0.87). The PCA identified two components with Eigenvalues >1 (“stiffness/ease of movement” and “willingness to be active/exercise”). There was a strong, positive correlation between GenPup-M and LOAD responses (r2 = 0.69, p<0.001), and GenPup-M and clinical examination scores (r2 = 0.74, p<0.001). There was a moderate, positive correlation between GenPup-M responses and peak vertical force (PVF) (r2 = 0.43, p<0.001). GenPup-M positively correlated with gold-standard objective forms of gait assessment (quantitative 3D gait analysis, validated veterinary clinical examination and a validated canine mobility questionnaire (LOAD)), adding further evidence towards validation of GenPup-M for use in all canine mobility impairments. The University of Liverpool and Dogs Trust are also working in conjunction to try and develop GenPup-M into a smartphone App to facilitate rapid owner-reported mobility assessment. There is also scope to further the use of GenPup-M to collect information relating to risk factors (e.g. walk duration/frequency, body condition score (BCS)) associated with early-onset canine mobility impairments. Quantitative canine gait analysis showed that there were statistically significant differences between peak vertical forces (PVF) of mobility impaired and non-mobility impaired dogs (p<0.05). Analyses of PVF showed that dogs with mobility impairments more evenly distributed their weight across all four limbs, compared to non-mobility impaired dogs. There were also differences in spatiotemporal parameters; stance time and swing phase were generally lower for the mobility impaired cohort than the non-mobility impaired cohort, suggesting that mobility-impaired dogs were walking slower than non-mobility impaired dogs.
| Item Type: | Thesis (Master of Philosophy) |
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| Divisions: | Faculty of Health and Life Sciences |
| Depositing User: | Symplectic Admin |
| Date Deposited: | 17 Jun 2022 11:02 |
| Last Modified: | 18 Jan 2023 21:00 |
| DOI: | 10.17638/03156110 |
| Supervisors: |
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| URI: | https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3156110 |
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