Reliability and Agreement of 5 Ergo-Kit Functional Capacity Evaluation Lifting Tests in Subjects With Low Back Pain

Gouttebarge V, Wind H, Kuijer PP, Sluiter JK, Frings-Dresen MH. Reliability and agreement of 5 Ergo-Kit functional capacity evaluation lifting tests in subjects with low back pain.ObjectiveTo assess interrater reliability and agreement of 5 Ergo-Kit functional capacity evaluation lifting tests in subjects with low back pain (LBP).DesignWithin-subjects design, with 2 repeated measurements.SettingAcademic medical center in The Netherlands.ParticipantsTwenty-four subjects (10 men, 14 women) with LBP.InterventionsNot applicable.Main Outcome MeasureFive Ergo-Kit lifting tests (2 isometric, 3 dynamic) were assessed on 2 occasions (t1, t2), by 2 different raters (R1, R2). The interval between the test sessions was 3 days. Interrater reliability level was expressed with the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC), and the level of agreement between raters with the standard error (SE) of measurement.ResultsICCs means (reliability) of isometric and dynamic Ergo-Kit lifting tests ranged from .94 to .97, and SE of measurement values (agreement) ranged from 1.9 to 8.6kg.ConclusionsThere was good reliability and agreement between raters of the isometric and dynamic Ergo-Kit lifting tests in subjects with LBP, which supports the use of these tests to assess functional lifting capacity.