Reliability of a Functional Test Battery Evaluating Functionality, Proprioception and Strength of the Ankle Joint

Aim: In contrast to the one-sided evaluation methods used in the past, combining multiple tests allows one to obtain a global assessment of the ankle joint. Materials and Methods: Twenty healthy male volunteers participated in this study. One component of the test battery included five different functional ability tests, which included: single limb hopping course, one-legged and triple-legged hop for distance, and six-meter (6-m) and cross 6-m hop for time. Ankle joint position sense and one leg standing test were used for proprioceptive evaluation. Isokinetic strength of the ankle invertor and evertor muscles were evaluated at a velocity of 120°/sec. Reliability of the test battery was assessed by calculating the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). Results: The ICCs for ankle functional and proprioceptive ability showed good to high reliability (ICC rangingfrom 0.89 to 0.98). Furthermore, isokinetic ankle joint inversion and eversion strength measurements represented good reliability (ICCs between 0.86-0.89). Conclusions: The functional test battery investigated in this study proved to be a reliable tool in the assessment of the ankle joints of healthy recreational athletes. Clinicians may use the information of the functional test battery to detect changes in ankle joint performance as a component of a screening evaluation.