ITEM ASSESSMENT IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF A DIAGNOSTIC MOTOR-PERFORMANCE TEST FOR MYOPATHY IN CHILDREN

The authors conducted an assessment study of newly developed motor per formance items for the diagnosis of myopathy. 17 children who had had muscle biopsy for this diagnosis in the recent past were administered 14 items based on the measurement of static, dynamic and explosive mus cle strength and muscle endurance. Individual items did not have perfe ct discriminative power, but the results were encouraging enough to wa rrant detailed study with combinations of the items, so that in future fewer children will have to undergo unnecessary muscle biopsies.