Reliability of common lower extremity musculoskeletal screening tests

Abstract

Objectives: Pre-season or pre-participation screening is commonly used to identify intrinsic risk factors for sports injury. Tests chosen are generally based on clinical experience due to the paucity of quality injury risk factor studies for sport and, often, the reliability of these clinical tests has not been established. The purpose of this study was to establish the reliability of eight, musculoskeletal screening tests, commonly used in the screening protocols of elite-level Australian football clubs. Methods: Fifteen participants ( n=9 female, n=6 male) were tested by two raters on two occasions, 1 week apart to establish the inter-rater and test–retest reliability of the chosen measurement tools. The tests of interest were Sit and Reach, Active Knee Extension, Passive Straight Leg Raise, slump, active hip internal rotation range of movement (ROM), active hip external rotation ROM, lumbar spine extension ROM and the Modified Thomas Test. Results: All tests demonstrated very good to excellent (Intraclass correlation coefficient, ICC 0.88–0.97) inter-rater reliability. Test–retest reliability was also shown to be good for these tests (ICC 0.63–0.99). Conclusion: The findings suggest that these simple, clinical measures of flexibility and ROM are reliable and support their use as pre-participation screening tools for sports participants.