OBJECTIVE: Duchenne muscular dystrophy, an X-linked genetic disease, leads to 
progressive muscle weakness mainly in the lower limbs. Motor function tests help 
to monitor disease progression. Can low-cost, simple assessments help in the 
diagnostic suspicion of Duchenne muscular dystrophy? The authors aim to define 
the sensitivity of time to rise from the floor, time to walk 10meters, and time 
to run 10meters, evaluating them as eventual diagnostic screening tools.
METHODS: This is an analytical, observational, retrospective (1998-2015), and 
prospective study (2015-2018). Cases were recruited from the database of the 
pediatric neurology department and the healthy, from child care consultations, 
with normal gait development (up to 15 months) and without other comorbidities 
(neuromuscular, pulmonary, heart diseases) from the same university hospital.
RESULTS: 128 Duchenne muscular dystrophy patients and 344 healthy children were 
analyzed, equally distributed in age groups. In Duchenne muscular dystrophy, 
there is a progressive increase in the means of the times to perform the motor 
tests according to the age group, which accelerates very abruptly after 7 years 
of age. Healthy children acquire maximum motor capacity at 6 years and stabilize 
their times. The time to rise showed a p-value <0.05 and a strong association 
(effect size [ES] >0.8) in all age groups (except at 12 years), with time to 
walk 10 meters from 9 years, and with time to run 10 meters , from 5 years. The 
100% sensitivity points were defined as follows: time to rise, at 2s; time to 
walk 10 meters, 5s; time to run 10 meters, 4s.
CONCLUSIONS: Time to rise is a useful and simple tool in the screening of 
neuromuscular disorders such as Duchenne muscular dystrophy, a previously 
incurable disease with new perspectives for treatment.