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Int J Sports Med 2001; 22(1): 40-44
DOI: 10.1055/s-2001-11360
Training and Testing
Georg Thieme Verlag Stuttgart ·New York

Isokinetic Strength Testing in Patients with Chronic Heart Failure - A Reliability Study

M. Quittan1 , G. F. Wiesinger1 , R. Crevenna1 , M. J. Nuhr1 , A. Sochor1 , R. Pacher2 , V. Fialka-Moser1
  • 1 Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
  • 2 Department of Internal Medicine II - Cardiology, Ludwig Boltzmann Institut für Herz-Kreislaufforschung, Vienna, Austria
Further Information

Publication History

June 10, 2000

Publication Date:
31 December 2001 (online)

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Measurement of skeletal muscle strength gains increasing importance as outcome parameter in patients with chronic heart failure. This study aimed at establishing short-term reliability of isokinetic strength measurements of knee extensor and flexor muscles in 38 patients with chronic heart failure. Strength tests were performed on the Cybex 6000 dynamometer. Trunk fixation was restricted to pelvic fixation. Two bouts of strength testing were performed on day 1 and one on day 5. Each isokinetic bout consisted of 3 reciprocal knee extension and flexion movements with an angular speed of 60 degrees per second. Isometric strength was measured at 30 degree knee angulation. Intraclass correlations ranged between 0.96 and 0.99 for isokinetic and isometric peak torque of knee extensor muscles and 0.82 - 0.96 for flexor muscles. Analysis of repeated measurements showed significant differences among the values of flexor peak torque in the isokinetic mode and between all measurements in the isometric mode (p < 0.05). Pearson's correlation coefficients for isokinetic and isometric extensor peak torques ranged between 0.95 and 0.99, for flexor peak torques between 0.81 and 0.85 (all p < 0.0001). Measurement of isokinetic knee extensor and flexor peak torque is a reliable method to assess muscle strength in patients with chronic heart failure even with altered trunk fixation.

Key words:

Chronic heart failure, skeletal muscle strength, isokinetic, isometric, reliability.

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MD M. Quittan

Dept. of Physical Medicine and RehabilitationUniversity Hospital Vienna

Waehringer Guertel 18 - 201090 Vienna, Austria

Phone: Phone:+ 43 (1) 40400-5277

Fax: Fax:+ 43 (1) 40400-5281

Email: E-mail:michael.quittan@univie.ac.at