title: Reliability of lower extremity muscle strength measurements with handheld dynamometry in stroke patients during the acute phase: a pilot reliability study.
abstract: [Purpose] No literature has described a suitable method for measuring muscle strength in a supine position during acute phase after stroke. This study investigated the feasibility and reliability of using a commercial handheld dynamometer to measure the muscle strengths of the hip flexor, knee extensor, and dorsiflexor in the supine position with a modified method for patients at a stroke intensive care center within 7 days of stroke onset. [Subjects and Methods] Fifteen persons with acute stroke participated in this cross-sectional study. For each patient, the muscle strengths of the hip flexors, knee extensors, and dorsiflexors were measured twice by two testers on the same day. Each patient was re-tested at the same time of day one day later. Inter-rater and test-retest reliability were then determined by the intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs). [Results] For the three muscle groups, the inter-rater reliability ICCs were all 0.99 and the test-retest reliability ICCs were greater than 0.85. The investigated method thus has good inter-rater reliability and high agreement between the test-retest measurements, with acceptable measurement errors. [Conclusion] The modified method using a handheld dynamometer to test the muscle strength of acute stroke patients is a feasible and reliable method for clinical use.
authors.affiliation: Division of Physical Therapy, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, National Taiwan University Hospital, R.O.C.
authors.forename: Hsiao-Ching
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Yen
authors.affiliation: School and Graduate Institute of Physical Therapy, College of Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taiwan, R.O.C.
authors.forename: Jer-Junn
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Luh
authors.affiliation: Division of Physical Therapy, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, National Taiwan University Hospital, R.O.C.
authors.forename: Ting
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Teng
authors.affiliation: Division of Physical Therapy, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, National Taiwan University Hospital, R.O.C.
authors.forename: Guan-Shuo
authors.initials: GS
authors.lastname: Pan
authors.affiliation: Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, National Taiwan University Hospital Hsin-Chu Branch, Taiwan, R.O.C.
authors.forename: Wen-Shiang
authors.initials: WS
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Division of Physical Therapy, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, National Taiwan University Hospital, R.O.C.
authors.forename: Chiang-Chang
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Hsun
authors.affiliation: Stroke Center and Department of Neurology, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taiwan, R.O.C.
authors.forename: Jiann-Shing
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Jeng
keywords: Acute stroke; Handheld dynamometer; Reliability