title: Validity of clinical outcome measures to evaluate ankle range of motion during the weight-bearing lunge test.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine the concurrent validity of standard clinical outcome measures compared to laboratory outcome measure while performing the weight-bearing lunge test (WBLT).
  
  
  METHODS
  Cross-sectional study.
  
  
  METHODS
  Fifty participants performed the WBLT to determine dorsiflexion ROM using four different measurement techniques: dorsiflexion angle with digital inclinometer at 15cm distal to the tibial tuberosity (°), dorsiflexion angle with inclinometer at tibial tuberosity (°), maximum lunge distance (cm), and dorsiflexion angle using a 2D motion capture system (°). Outcome measures were recorded concurrently during each trial. To establish concurrent validity, Pearson product-moment correlation coefficients (r) were conducted, comparing each dependent variable to the 2D motion capture analysis (identified as the reference standard). A higher correlation indicates strong concurrent validity.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There was a high correlation between each measurement technique and the reference standard. Specifically the correlation between the inclinometer placement at 15cm below the tibial tuberosity (44.9°±5.5°) and the motion capture angle (27.0°±6.0°) was r=0.76 (p=0.001), between the inclinometer placement at the tibial tuberosity angle (39.0°±4.6°) and the motion capture angle was r=0.71 (p=0.001), and between the distance from the wall clinical measure (10.3±3.0cm) to the motion capture angle was r=0.74 (p=0.001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study determined that the clinical measures used during the WBLT have a high correlation with the reference standard for assessing dorsiflexion range of motion. Therefore, obtaining maximum lunge distance and inclinometer angles are both valid assessments during the weight-bearing lunge test.
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine, Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, United States. Electronic address: eannehall@health.usf.edu.
authors.forename: Emily A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Hall
authors.affiliation: Department of Kinesiology, School of Public Health, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, United States.
authors.forename: Carrie L
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Docherty
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000843:Ankle Joint / Q000502:physiology*; D005080:Exercise Test; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D016059:Range of Motion, Articular; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Concurrent validity; Inclinometer; Lunge distance; Motion capture analysis; Reference standard