title: Knee-laxity measurements examined by a left-hand- and a right-hand-dominant physiotherapist, in patients with anterior cruciate ligament injuries and healthy controls.
abstract: The purpose of the study was to analyse and compare KT-1000 knee laxity as examined by a left-hand- and a right-hand-dominant physiotherapist in a group of patients with an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury and a group of patients, 2 years after ACL reconstruction. The other aim was to measure and analyse knee laxity in a group of persons without any known knee problems. A cross-sectional examination of two groups of patients pre-operatively and post-operatively after ACL reconstruction and examination of healthy controls on two different occasions was performed. Fifty-three patients who were scheduled for ACL reconstruction and 39 patients who attended a 2-year follow-up examination were included in the study. In the ACL-deficient group, 32 patients had a right-sided ACL injury and 21 patients a left-sided ACL injury. The corresponding figures in the post-operative group were 21 patients with a right-sided ACL injury and 18 patients with a left-sided ACL injury. Twenty-eight healthy persons without any known knee problems served as controls. One left-hand- and one right-hand-dominant experienced physiotherapist performed all the examinations. To be able to evaluate the intra and inter-reliability of the examiners the controls were examined at two occasions. The left-hand-dominant physiotherapist measured significantly higher absolute laxity values in the left knee, both injured and non-injured ones, compared with the right-hand-dominant physiotherapist. This was found irrespectively of whether the patients belonged to the ACL deficient or the post-operative group. In the healthy control group, the right-hand-dominant physiotherapist measured significantly higher knee-laxity values in the right knee compared with the left-hand-dominant physiotherapist. Correspondingly, the left-hand-dominant physiotherapist measured significantly higher knee laxity values in the left knee. We conclude that KT-1000 arthrometer laxity measurements can be affected by the hand dominance of the examiner. This might affect the reliability of KT-1000 arthrometer measurements. Level of evidence is II.
authors.affiliation: Fyrbodal Research Institute, Norra Alvsborg County Hospital, 451 85, Trollhättan, Uddevalla, Sweden. ninni.sernert@fyrbodalinstitutet.se
authors.forename: Ninni
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Sernert
authors.forename: Janett
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Helmers
authors.forename: Catarina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Kartus
authors.forename: Lars
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Ejerhed
authors.forename: Jüri
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kartus
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D016118:Anterior Cruciate Ligament / Q000503:physiopathology; D000070598:Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injuries; D053587:Arthrometry, Articular; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D007839:Functional Laterality; D006282:Health Personnel; D006801:Humans; D007593:Joint Instability / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology; D007719:Knee Joint / Q000503:physiopathology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D026761:Physical Therapy Specialty