HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Submit a response Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when Rapid Responses are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Harris, K. D Articles by Wainner, R. S Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Harris, K. D Articles by Wainner, R. S Related Collections Injuries and Conditions: Neck Tests and Measurements Social Bookmarking                      What's this?

Reliability of a Measurement of Neck Flexor Muscle Endurance

KD Harris, PT, MPT, CSCS; DM Heer, PT, PTA, MPT, OCS; TC Roy, PT, MPT; and DM Santos, PT, MPT, OCS, were students in the US Army–Baylor Graduate Program in Physical Therapy, San Antonio, Tex, at the time of this study and completed the project in partial fulfillment of the Master in Physical Therapy degree requirements.
JM Whitman, PT, DSc, OCS, FAAOMPT, is Assistant Professor, Regis University, Denver, Colo, and US Army–Baylor University Postprofessional Doctoral Program in Orthopaedic and Manual Physical Therapy
RS Wainner, PT, PhD, OCS, ECS, FAAOMPT, is Assistant Professor, Faculty, and Project Advisor, US Army–Baylor Graduate Program in Physical Therapy

Address all correspondence to: Captain Kevin Harris, Group Physical Therapist, 10th Special Forces Group (Airborne), Troop Medical Clinic #10, 7490 Sutherland Cir, Ft Carson, CO 80913 (USA) (kevin.harris{at}cen.amedd.army.mil, kevin.d.harris{at}us.army.mil)

Background and Purpose. Neck flexor muscle endurance has been negatively correlated with cervical pain and dysfunction. The purposes of this study were to determine rater reliability in subjects both with and without neck pain and to determine whether there was a difference in neck flexor muscle endurance between the 2 groups. Subjects. Forty-one subjects with and without neck pain were enrolled in this repeated-measures reliability study. Methods. Two raters used an isometric neck retraction test to assess neck flexor muscle endurance for all subjects during an initial session, and subjects without neck pain returned for testing 1 week later. Results. For the group without neck pain, intrarater reliability was good to excellent (intraclass correlation coefficient [ICC(3,1)]=.82–.91), and interrater reliability was moderate to good (ICC[2,1]=.67–.78). The associated standard error of measurement (SEM) ranged from 8.0 to 11.0 seconds and from 12.6 to 15.3 seconds, respectively. For the group with neck pain, interrater reliability was moderate (ICC[2,1]=.67, SEM=11.5). Neck flexor muscle endurance test results for the group without neck pain (=38.95 seconds, SD=26.4) and the group with neck pain (=24.1 seconds, SD=12.8) were significantly different. Discussion and Conclusion. Reliability coefficients differed between the 2 groups and ranged from moderate to excellent and improved after the first test session. The interrater reliability of data obtained with the neck flexor muscle endurance test in people with neck pain must be improved in order for clinicians to distinguish a clinically meaningful change from measurement error. Neck flexor muscle endurance was both statistically and clinically greater for subjects without neck pain than for those with neck pain.

Key Words: Cervical impairment • Cervical pain • Chin tuck • Deep neck flexors

CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    What's this?

This article has been cited by other articles:

				P. E. Mintken, J. A. Cleland, K. J. Carpenter, M. L. Bieniek, M. Keirns, and J. M. Whitman Some Factors Predict Successful Short-Term Outcomes in Individuals With Shoulder Pain Receiving Cervicothoracic Manipulation: A Single-Arm Trial Physical Therapy, January 1, 2010; 90(1): 26 - 42. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				S. L. Fritz, S. Blanton, G. Uswatte, E. Taub, and S. L. Wolf Minimal Detectable Change Scores for the Wolf Motor Function Test Neurorehabil Neural Repair, September 1, 2009; 23(7): 662 - 667. [Abstract] [PDF]

				J. A Cleland, J. M Fritz, J. M Whitman, and R. Heath Predictors of Short-Term Outcome in People With a Clinical Diagnosis of Cervical Radiculopathy Physical Therapy, December 1, 2007; 87(12): 1619 - 1632. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				H.-M. Chen, C.-L. Hsieh, Sing Kai Lo, L.-J. Liaw, S.-M. Chen, and J.-H. Lin The Test-Retest Reliability of 2 Mobility Performance Tests in Patients With Chronic Stroke Neurorehabil Neural Repair, July 1, 2007; 21(4): 347 - 352. [Abstract] [PDF]

				J. A Cleland, J. D Childs, J. M Fritz, J. M Whitman, and S. L Eberhart Development of a Clinical Prediction Rule for Guiding Treatment of a Subgroup of Patients With Neck Pain: Use of Thoracic Spine Manipulation, Exercise, and Patient Education Physical Therapy, January 1, 2007; 87(1): 9 - 23. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]