Intrarater reliability of selected clinical outcome measures following anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction

Study Design: Single group repeated measures following anterior cruciate li gament (ACL) reconstruction. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the intrarater reliab ility of selected clinical outcome measures in patients having ACL reconstr uction. Background: Several investigations have reported the reliability of isokine tic testing and knee ligament arthrometry. Fewer studies have examined the reliability of lower extremity functional tests, with most of these studies evaluating normal subjects. Methods and Measures: Fifteen physically active males with unilateral ACL-r econstructed knees were evaluated with the KT-1000, Biodex isokinetic dynam ometer, and 3 functional hop tests on 5 occasions. Results: Intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) revealed good to high i ntrarater reliability (ICC >0.80) of the functional hop tests and isokineti c peak torque values. ICCs were higher for the involved limb than the uninv olved limb using the scores from the KT-1000 Manual Maximum Test. Conclusions: The outcome measures examined in this investigation have been shown to be reliable in patients with ACL reconstructions, and support prev ious investigations in nonimpaired populations. Further research is needed to examine the validity of these postoperative outcome measures in patients with ACL reconstructions.