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Intrarater reliability of goniometry and hand-held dynamometry for shoulder and elbow examinations in female team handball athletes and asymptomatic volunteers

  • Arthroscopy and Sports Medicine
  • Published:
Archives of Orthopaedic and Trauma Surgery Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Introduction

To evaluate the intrarater reliability for examining active range of motion (ROM) and isometric strength of the shoulder and elbow among asymptomatic female team handball athletes and a control group using a manual goniometer and hand-held dynamometry (HHD).

Materials and methods

22 female team handball athletes (age: 21.0 ± 3.7 years) and 25 volunteers (13 female, 12 male, age: 21.9 ± 1.24 years) participated to determine bilateral ROM for shoulder rotation and elbow flexion/extension, as well as isometric shoulder rotation and elbow flexion/extension strength. Subjects were assessed on two separate test sessions with 7 days between sessions. Relative (intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) and standard error of measurement (SEM) reliability were calculated.

Results

Reliability for ROM and strength were good to excellent for both shoulders and groups (athletes: ICC = 0.94–0.97, SEM 1.07°–4.76 N, controls: ICC = 0.96–1.00, SEM = 0.00 N–4.48 N). Elbow measurements for both groups also showed good-to-excellent reliability (athletes: ICC = 0.79–0.97, SEM = 0.98°–5.94 N, controls: ICC = 0.87–1.00, SEM = 0.00 N–5.43 N).

Conclusions

It is important to be able to reliably reproduce active ROM and isometric strength evaluations. Using a standardized testing position, goniometry and HHD are reliable instruments in the assessment of shoulder and elbow joint performance testing. We showed good-to-excellent reproducible results for male and female control subjects and female handball athletes, although the single parameters in ROM and strength were different for each group and between the shoulders and elbows.

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Acknowledgments

We are grateful to the volunteers and the team of SV Union Halle-Neustadt (2nd national female team handball league), who made this study possible.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center of Orthopedic Surgery (ZOC), Burckhardtstrasse 60, 34346, Hann. Muenden, Germany

    Georg Fieseler

  2. Department of Orthopedic and Trauma Surgery, Martin-Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, 06120, Halle (Saale), Germany

    Thomas Molitor, Lars Irlenbusch, Karl-Stefan Delank & Rene Schwesig

  3. School of Kinesiology and Recreation, Illinois State University, Normal, IL, 61790, USA

    Kevin G. Laudner

  4. Tunisian Researches Laboratory “Sport Performance Optimization”, Tunis, Tunisia

    Souhail Hermassi

Authors
  1. Georg Fieseler
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  2. Thomas Molitor
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  3. Lars Irlenbusch
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  4. Karl-Stefan Delank
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  5. Kevin G. Laudner
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  7. Rene Schwesig
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Georg Fieseler.

Ethics declarations

The study has been performed without any source of support in the form of grants, financial donations or other items.

All participants provided written consent.

The work is part of a study that was approved by the Research Ethics Committee of the University of Medicine of the Federal University of Halle—Wittenberg, Germany (study 2013–13).

Additional information

The investigation is part of the dissertation work by Thomas Molitor.

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Fieseler, G., Molitor, T., Irlenbusch, L. et al. Intrarater reliability of goniometry and hand-held dynamometry for shoulder and elbow examinations in female team handball athletes and asymptomatic volunteers. Arch Orthop Trauma Surg 135, 1719–1726 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00402-015-2331-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00402-015-2331-6

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