Abstract
Objective
Determine trunk and shoulder muscle strength cutoff points for functional independence
and wheelchair skills, and verify the predictive capacity of relative and absolute
peak torque in men with spinal cord injury (SCI).
Design
Cross-sectional study.
Setting
Rehabilitation hospital setting.
Participants
Men (N=54) with SCI were recruited and stratified into high and low paraplegia groups.
Interventions
All participants performed maximum strength tests for shoulder abduction or adduction
(isokinetic) and trunk flexion or extension (isometric) to determine relative and
absolute peak torque cutoff points for the Spinal Cord Independence Measure version
III (SCIM-III) and Adapted Manual Wheelchair Circuit (AMWC).
Main outcome measures
The primary outcome measures were SCIM-III, AMWC-Brazil test, and strength variables
(peak torques). Demographic characteristics obtained from participants’ electronic
medical records were the secondary outcomes used as predictor variables of functional
independence.
Results
The best predictive model for SCIM-III (R=0.78, P≤.05) used the sum of trunk flexion and extension relative peak torque values to determine
the cutoff points (1.42 N·m/kg for a score of 70). Relative shoulder abduction peak
torque was used in the predictive models for AMWC outcomes: performance score (R=0.77, P≤.05, cutoff points of 0.97 N·m/kg for 300.0m) and 3-minute overground wheeling (R=0.72, P≤.05, cutoff points of 0.96 N·m/kg for 18.5s).
Conclusions
Relative peak torque showed better predictive capacity compared to absolute peak torque.
Cutoff points were established for relative muscle strength and could help health
professionals set appropriate goals for individuals with SCI to achieve high functional
independence and wheelchair ability.
Keywords
List of abbreviations:
1RM (one-repetition maximum), AMWC (Adapted Manual Wheelchair Circuit), HP (high paraplegia), LP (low paraplegia), MVIC (maximum voluntary isometric contraction), SCI (spinal cord injury), SCIM-III (Spinal Cord Independence Measure version III)To read this article in full you will need to make a payment
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: February 11, 2020
Footnotes
Disclosures: none
Identification
Copyright
© 2020 by the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine
