The Relationship between Lower Extremity Isokinetic Work and Single-Leg Functional Hop-Work Test
Context:Lower extremity functional testing assesses strength, power, and neuro-muscular control. There are only moderate correlations between distance hopped and isokinetic strength measures.Objective:Determine if incorporating body weight in the single-leg hop for distance increases the correlation to isokinetic measures.Study Design:Correlational study.Setting:Musculoskeletal laboratory.Participants:30 healthy college students; 15 men and 15 women; ages 18 to 30 years.Main Outcome Measures:Isokinetic average peak torque and total work of quadriceps and hamstrings and single-leg hop work and distance.Results:Significant correlations include hop work to total-work knee extension (r= .89), average peak-torque knee extension (r= .88), distance hopped to total-work knee extension (r= .56) and average peak-torque knee extension (r= .63). Correlations involving hop work were greater than distance hopped (P< .05).Conclusions:Use of body weight in the assessment of distance hopped provides better information about the patient’s lower extremity strength and ability than the distance hopped alone.