Reliability of Single Leg Balance Test Using Posturography

Tae Im Yi; Yeon Kang; Yoon Soo Lee

doi:10.5763/kjsm.2014.32.2.120

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Yi, Kang, and Lee: Reliability of Single Leg Balance Test Using Posturography

Clinical Article

Korean J Sports Med 2014;32(2):120-125.

Published online: 17 January 2014

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5763/kjsm.2014.32.2.120

Reliability of Single Leg Balance Test Using Posturography

Tae Im Yi, Yeon Kang, Yoon Soo Lee

Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Bundang Jesaeng Hospital, Seongnam, Korea

Correspondence: Yeon Kang Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Bundang Jesaeng Hospital, 20 Seohyeon-ro 180 beon-gil, Bundang-gu, Seongnam 463-774, Korea Tel: +82-31-779-0063, Fax: +82-31-779-0635 E-mail: glide@dmc.or.kr

Received 2 October 2014 Revised 17 November 2014 Accepted 24 November 2014

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Abstract

Posturographic examination is commonly used by clinicians to evaluate standing balance. Because it is perfomed with double leg standing, it cannot sensitively detect the minor balance problem like functional ankle instability. This study aims to evaluate the test retest reliability of the single leg balance test using Tetrax posturography and its correlation with modified star excursion balance test (mSEBT). 30 healthy participants (16 male, 14 female, mean age 26.3±3.3) were volunteered for this study. We manufactured a specially designed wood plate to assess their single leg standing balance. It was set on each of the 4 force plates of Tetrax posturography (Sunlight Medical Ltd., Ramat Gan, Israel). Stability index were measured based on each single leg stance. Participants performed the single leg balance test on Tetrax posturography in three different times, and they also performed the mSEBT. The test retest reliability of stability index measured by Tetrax posturography was assessed by the intraclass correlation coefficient, and its correlation with the normalized composite distance of mSEBT was assessed by Pearson correlation coefficient. The single leg balance test using Tetrax posturography showed good test retest reliability. There was a negative correlation between the stability index of Tetrax posturography and the normalized composite distance of mSEBT, based on right and left leg stance, respectively. These findings suggest that Tetrax posturography is a useful and reliable tool for single leg balance assessment.

Keywords: Reliability, Postural balance, Proprioception, Ankle injuries

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Fig. 1.

(A) Tetrax posturography is composed of monitor, desk-top and four separate force plates. (B) Specially manufactured wood plate which in-stalled on each of the four force plates. (C) Performing the single leg balance test. (D) Bottom surface of the wood plate.

Fig. 2.

(A) Anterior, (B) Poster-omedial, (C) Posterolateral reach directions of the modified star excursion balance test based on right leg stance.

Fig. 3.

Statistically significant (p<0.05) and negative correlation was observed between the stability index of Tetrax posturography and the normalized composite distance of modified star excursion balance test, based on right and left leg stance, respectively.

Table 1.

Results of stability index of Tetrax posturography and normarlized composite reach distance of modified star excursion balance test

	Right	Left
Stability index^∗	38.06±8.67	36.48±7.7
Normalized composite reach distance (% leg length)^†	90.22±5.82	90.77±6.14

Values are presented as mean±standard deviation.

^∗ Mean of the each three trials;

^† Normalized to limb length.

Table 2.

Test retest reliability of stability index measured by Tetrax posturography based on each single leg stance

	Right		Left		p-value
	ICC	95% CI	ICC	95% CI	p-value
Test retest reliability	0.762	0.614−0.868	0.725	0.563−0.816	0.000

ICC: intraclass correlation coefficient, CI: confidence interval.

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