Faculty Publications

Document Type

Article

Keywords

authenticity, efficacy, range of motion, lumbar spine

Journal/Book/Conference Title Title

South African Journal of Sports Medicine

Volume

28

Issue

1

First Page

23

Last Page

26

Abstract

Background: Cricket bowling involves combined spinal movements of side bending and rotation and, consequently, injury to the low back is a common problem. Therefore the assessment of lumbar spine kinematics has become a routine component in preseason screening. This includes static measurement of lateral spinal flexion as asymmetrical range of motion may predispose an athlete to low back injury.


Objectives: This study examined intra-rater reliability and concurrent validity of the fingertip-to-floor distance test (FFD) when compared to a criterion range of motion measure.


Methods: Thirty-four junior-level cricket players aged 13‑16 years were recruited. Lumbar spine lateral flexion was measured simultaneously with the fingertip-to-floor distance test and digital inclinometry methods. Relative and absolute intra-rater reliability were investigated with intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC3,1) of agreement, standard error of measurement (SEM) estimates, Bland and Altman bias estimates and 95% limits of agreement, respectively. The concurrent validity of the fingertip-to-floor distance test, compared to digital inclinometry measures, was examined with Pearson correlation coefficients.


Results: Intra-rater reliability demonstrated substantial agreement for both measures (ICC3,1 > 0.84). The fingertip-to-floor distance test SEM values ranged from 1.71‑2.01 cm with an estimated minimum detectable change (MDC) threshold of 4.73‑5.55 cm. The inclinometry SEM values ranged from 1.00‑1.09° with minimal detectable change estimates of 2.77‑3.01°. There were strong correlations between the index test and criterion measure outcomes (r > 0.84, p < 0.001).


Conclusions: This study’s results support the intra-rater reliability and concurrent validity of the finger-to-floor distance test, suggesting it to be a suitable surrogate measure for lumbar lateral flexion testing.

Department

School of Kinesiology, Allied Health, and Human Services

Comments

First published in South African Journal of Sports Medicine, v. 28 n. 1 (2016), pp. 23-26, published by African Journals Online. DOI: 10.17159/2078-516X

Original Publication Date

2016

DOI of published version

10.17159/2078-516X/2016/v28i1a1414

Repository

UNI ScholarWorks, University of Northern Iowa, Rod Library

Copyright

©2016 Mark D. Hecimovich and Jeffrey J. Hebert

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Date Digital

2016

Language

EN

File Format

application/pdf

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