Ankle joint range of motion measurements in spastic cerebral palsy children: Intraobserver and interobserver reliability and reproducibility of goniometry and visual estimation

The aim of this study was to assess the intra- and interobserver reliability acid reproducibility of goniometry and visual estimation of ankle joint range of motion measurements in children with spastic cerebral palsy. Forty-six ankles of 24 spastic cerebral palsy children were measured under a strict protocol. The global mean measurement error was 5degrees(SD, 5degrees) for intra- and interobserver measurements and 3 (SD, 3) for goniometry versus visual estimation. Statistical analysis showed a high reliability for intra- and interobserver measurements (r>0.75), between visual estimation and goniometry (correlation coefficient, r>0.967; concordance coefficient, r>0.957). Both visual estimation and goniometry ankle range-of-motion measurements are reliable and reproducible in spastic cerebral palsy children if a strict but simple protocol is applied.