Reproducibility of sagittal pelvic tilt measurements in normal subjects using digital inclinometry

Abstract

Standing sagittal pelvic tilt posture is widely assessed qualitatively, yet no efficient non-invasive quantitatively method is available for measuring pelvic tilt position or its amplitude. The main objective of the current study was to assess the intra- and inter-tester reproducibility of digital inclinometry-based (DI) measurements of pelvic tilt in healthy subjects. Pelvic inclination was measured while standing in neutral position (NP), maximal anterior pelvic tilt (APT) and maximal posterior pelvic tilt (PPT) which served for calculating the total pelvic tilt (TPT) range of motion (TPT = PPT–APT). On two separate test occasions two convenience samples of healthy women and men ( N = 15 in each) were each measured by two different testers. In both groups the intra-tester reproducibility indices of NP, APT, PPT and TPT were acceptable as revealed by high and significant ICCs and low standard error of measurements (SEM). In women the inter-tester reproducibility indices, of the same variables, were high as distinguished by no significant differences between testers and high and significant ICCs. In men, significant differences were found in APT and PPT but the between-testers TPT scores were similar. Collectively these findings indicate that pelvic inclinometry yields acceptable reproducibility which in the light of the facility of the method may render it an efficient clinical tool.