INTER-RATER RELIABILITY OF THE ACTIVE STRAIGHT-LEG RAISE AND ONE-LEG STANDING TESTS IN NON-PREGNANT WOMEN

Objective: To determine the inter-rater reliability of the Active Straight-Leg Raise and One-Leg Standing tests. Design: Cross-sectional pilot study. Subjects: Thirty-one women who were either not pregnant or at least 9 months post-partum. Methods: Subjects completed a questionnaire and standardized pain and disability assessments. The Active Straight-Leg Raise and One-Leg Standing tests were assessed by 3 independent, blinded examiners. Inter-rater reliability was determined, and relationships with assessments were explored. Results: For the Active Straight-Leg Raise test, the kappa coefficient was 0.87, sensitivity 71%, and specificity 91%. Relationships with various pain and disability assessments were demonstrated, including the Functional Pelvic Pain Scale (r=0.77) and Roland-Morris Disability Questionnaire (r=0.70). For the One-Leg Standing test, kappa coefficients were 0.02 and 0.14 for the left and right sides, respectively, and thus no further analyses were performed. Conclusion: In women with a spectrum of low-back and pelvic pain, the Active Straight-Leg Raise test had good inter-rater reliability, whereas the One-Leg Standing test did not. Further studies are required regarding the validity of the Active Straight-Leg Raise test.