Test-retest reliability of joint position and kinesthetic sense in the elbow of healthy subjects

Abstract

Proprioception is an important effect measure in neuromuscular function training in physiotherapy. Reliability studies of methods for measuring proprioception are few on joint position sense (JPS) and threshold to detection of a passive movement (TDPM) on the elbow. The aim was to study test-retest reliability of elbow-JPS and elbow-TDPM. A total of 45 healthy subjects participated in the study (mean age 33 years, range 18–57 years). In the active-active test-retest of JPS 26 subjects and in test-retest of TDPM 19 subjects participated. The duration between test and retest was approximately 30 minutes. There was no significant difference (p<0.05) between test and retest. The intraclass correlation coefficients, (ICC, model 2.1) of test-retest on absolute error were 0.59 and 0.69 for JPS and TDPM, respectively, indicating a fair to good reliability. ICCs of variable error were 0.45 for TDPM, indicating a fair to good reliability, whereas for JPS it was 0.007, indicating poor reliability. TDPM can be recommended as an examination tool for absolute error, but to a minor degree for consistency of error. JPS can only be recommended to a minor degree for absolute error, but for consistency of error it is not reliable and can therefore not be recommended.