Test-retest reliability of a new device for assessing ankle joint threshold to detect passive movement in healthy adults

Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate the test-retest reliability of a new device for assessing ankle joint kinesthesia. This device could measure the passive motion threshold of four ankle joint movements, namely plantarflexion, dorsiflexion, inversion and eversion. A total of 21 healthy adults, including 13 males and 8 females, participated in the study. Each participant completed two sessions on two separate days with 1-week interval. The sessions were administered by the same experimenter in the same laboratory. At least 12 trials (three successful trials in each of the four directions) were performed in each session. The mean values in each direction were calculated and analysed. The ICC values of test-retest reliability ranged from 0.737 (dorsiflexion) to 0.935 (eversion), whereas the SEM values ranged from 0.21° (plantarflexion) to 0.52° (inversion). The Bland-Altman plots showed that the reliability of plantarflexion-dorsiflexion was better than that of inversion-eversion. The results evaluated the reliability of the new device as fair to excellent. The new device for assessing kinesthesia could be used to examine the ankle joint kinesthesia.

Keywords: ankle joint; kinesthesia; new device; reliability.