2011 Volume 13 Issue 4 Pages 193-200
The purpose of this study was to investigate inter-tester reliability when ultrasonography is used to measure the displacement of the central aponeurosis during contracting medial head of the gastrocnemius (MG-displacement) , comparing use of the probe held by hand and held by apparatus. The subjects were 10 healthy males. An ultrasonic diagnostic device (ProSound6, B-mode, linear probe; Aloka, Inc.) was used independently by two testers (physical therapists) to measure the MG-displacement for ankle plantar flexor forces of 50N, 100N, 150N, and 200N. Two measurement conditions were examined: 1) probe held by hand and 2) probe held by apparatus. For each condition, the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC2.1), the 95% confidence interval (95% CI), and the standard error of measurement (SEM [mm]) were compared. For the probe held by hand and that held by apparatus, the respective results were as follows: ICC2.1 0.96-0.90 vs. 0.96-0.91; 95% CI 0.99-0.58 vs. 0.99-0.64; and SEM 0.92-0.11 vs. 0.38-0.24, respectively. Thus, the inter-tester reliability was similarly high when measuring MG-displacement using an ultrasound probe held by hand and that held by apparatus.
