Reliability of Hand-Held Dynamometer in Measuring Gluteal Muscle Rate of Torque Development and Peak Torque: Push and Pull Configurations.
Takhyun Yoo, Sungwan Kim, Julie P Burland and 1 others
PMID 40182912WHAT IT FOUND
Hand-held dynamometers reliably measure hip strength and speed of force production in healthy adults.
The pull configuration is more reliable for hip extension. Because push and pull setups yield different absolute values, do not use them interchangeably when tracking a patient's progress.
Key findings
01Both push and pull configurations showed moderate to excellent reliability for measuring hip extension rate of torque development and peak torque.
02The pull configuration demonstrated higher reliability than the push configuration for hip extension measures, likely due to greater stability of the testing surface.
03There was no significant difference in patient-reported discomfort between the push and pull configurations.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
The study included only healthy, young, physically active adults, so results may not apply to older patients or those with lower extremity pathology. The pull configuration for hip abduction required a specific treatment table with a face hole for proper strapping, which may limit generalizability to clinics with standard tables. The study did not test the reliability of these configurations in patients with pain or injury.
Declared interests
No conflicts of interest or funding sources were explicitly declared in the provided text.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that a change in hand-held dynamometer scores reflects a change in patient strength if you switched between push and pull configurations. The two methods measure different absolute values due to surface stability, so mixing them will invalidate your progress tracking.