Open AccessAnkle size measurements with the foot in a free haning position: Reliability of the Figure-of-Eight Tape Method
Author(s) -
Guy van Herp,
Talal Al Shatti
Publication year - 1998
Publication title -
south african journal of physiotherapy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.166
H-Index - 3
eISSN - 2410-8219
pISSN - 0379-6175
DOI - 10.4102/sajp.v54i1.598
Subject(s) - ankle , reliability (semiconductor) , foot (prosody) , sitting , tape measure , physical therapy , medicine , orthodontics , physical medicine and rehabilitation , computer science , mathematics , surgery , physics , power (physics) , linguistics , philosophy , geometry , pathology , quantum mechanics
Ankle swelling is a commonly encountered condition in physiotherapy practice. Reliable and easy methods of quantification are required to record progress in treatment. The aim of this study was to establish the inter- and intra-reliability of the figure-of-eight tape measure for measuring ankle size. Thirty-six healthy subjects were measured in long-sitting position with the foot hanging free over the edge of a plinth. Three testers performed four measurements each for a total of 12 measurements per subject. The intra-class correlation coefficient was 0.96 for inter-tester reliability and 0.94 for intra-tester reliability. The results agree with previous reliability studies using the figure-of-eight tape method on healthy subjects. The figure-of-eight tape method is easily learned and applied. It is a reliable method for measuring ankle size. Further research is needed to demonstrate the reliability and validity of the technique in a clinical setting.