A feasible and reliable muscle fatigue assessment protocol for individuals with cerebral palsy.
OBJECTIVE
To develop a reliable and feasible isokinetic fatigue protocol for the knee flexors and extensors in individuals with cerebral palsy (CP) who are ambulatory.


METHODS
Twelve subjects with CP, 10 to 23 years old, participated in the study. The protocol consisted of repeated maximum voluntary concentric knee flexion and extensions at 60 degrees /sec for a minimum of 35 repetitions. Fatigue Index (FI) and slope of the linear regression were computed. Reliability tests conducted a week later with five of the 12 subjects. Intraclass correlation coefficients were calculated for test-retest reliability.


RESULTS
All subjects completed 35 repetitions, with only half reaching a 50% decline. All fatigue parameters were reliable for both knee flexors and extensors (slope: 0.94 and 0.97; slope/peak torque: 0.83 and 0.99; FI: 0.73 and 0.86, respectively).


CONCLUSIONS
This isokinetic fatigue protocol is reliable and feasible for children and young adults with mild to moderate CP.
Moreau
Noelle
N
Department of Kinesiology, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70803, USA.
Li
Li
L
Damiano
Diane L
DL
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002547:Cerebral Palsy / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D002648:Child; D002985:Clinical Protocols / Q000592:standards; D005080:Exercise Test / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000592:standards; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D035002:Lower Extremity; D008297:Male; D018763:Muscle Fatigue; D053581:Muscle Strength Dynamometer; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D019415:Torque