Concurrent Validation and Reference Values of Gluteus Medius Clinical Test

• Published in: International journal of sports physical therapy Vol. 16; no. 2; pp. 335 - 341
• Main Authors: Teixeira, Amanda S S, Silva, Paula L, Cintra, Sabrina P, Viegas, Fernanda, Mendonça, Luciana D, Bittencourt, Natália F N
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States NASMI 01-04-2021; North American Sports Medicine Institute
• Subjects: Original Research; injury; strength; endurance; gluteus medius; physiotherapy; movement system
• ISSN: 2159-2896; 2159-2896
• DOI: 10.26603/001c.21477

The hip abductor muscles, mainly the gluteus medius, are responsible for controlling hip adduction in a closed kinetic chain. Frontal plane knee alignment, assessed during functional activities such squatting, jumping and running, may overload joint structures, like the anterior cruciate ligament and patellofemoral joint. The hand-held dynamometer is reliable and effective for testing the muscular strength of the hip abductors.
1. To assess the concurrent validity between the gluteus medius clinical test and a maximum isometric force test of the hip abductors using the hand-held dynamometer; (2) to determine the intra and inter-examiner reliability for the application of the gluteus medius clinical test; and (3) to describe reference values of gluteus medius clinical test on a population of youth athletes.
Cross-sectional.
Thirty healthy individuals were recruited for validity and reliability testing. On the first day, participants performed the maximal isometric test of the hip abductors, measured via hand-held dynamometry. On the following week, the gluteus medius clinical test was performed. Intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC
) were computed for the reliability analysis, with a 95% confidence interval. To generate reference values, the gluteus medius clinical test was performed on 273 athletes.
The results of this study indicated a weak positive correlation (r = 0.436, p = 0.001) between tests, which indicates that they examine different domains of gluteus medius muscle function, likely endurance and muscle strength. The magnitude of computed ICCs (>0.95) indicates excellent intra- and inter-examiner reliability.
The findings of the current study indicate that the gluteus medius clinical test is reliable and examines a domain of muscular function not fully captured by HHD. The clinical test developed in this study is low-cost and can be included for gluteus medius assessment.
Level 3.