If the goal is to hit a bullseye, accuracy would be the proximity of each throw to the bullseye.īefore we address the instances in which symmetry matters, I want to make clear that for the general population it is far more important that physical activity guidelines are met than searching out asymmetries on an initial assessment.

Accuracy : the degree of closeness of a measurement to the true measurement.

The issue with precision in terms of manual muscle tests is once an individual can resist “strong pressure” it is impossible to be precise beyond “did they hit the dartboard” to the analogy above. If the goal is to hit a bullseye, someone hitting triple ten three times would be very precise, but would not be accurate. The classic example used to delineate precision versus accuracy is a dart board.

Precision : the degree to which repeated measurements demonstrate the same result.

There is a high degree of subjectivity in the grades greater than 3/5, and rating is contingent upon both the strength of the clinician and that of the athlete. The test is performed with an athlete resisting a clinician’s force.

Manual Muscle Test (MMT): A test used to assess the strength of a muscle on a 0-5 scale.

Hamstring to Quad ratio (H:Q ratio): An antiquated, unsubstantiated metric that was used in the early 2000’s to push narratives such as “quad dominant” athletes.

This can be an important conversion if an athlete has been away from activity for a while, as a decrease in unaffected leg strength can make limb symmetry indexes appear better than reality.

Peak Torque to Body weight ratio (PT/BW): The ratio of the peak torque (in Newton-meters) to body weight (in kilograms).

For example, an athlete kicking 85 pounds on their surgical leg and 120 pounds on their nonsurgical leg would have a quadriceps index of 70.8%.

The calculation is performed by dividing the affected side by the unaffected side. Limb Symmetry Index (LSI) : The percentage difference in strength side to side for a specific muscle group or limb.Below will be common terms used throughout this piece and their associated acronyms. If an athlete does possess an asymmetry after injury, that likely means they need to be doing more work in their programming to address this in a constrained manner.ĭefining terms will be important as some of the vernacular may be unfamiliar to the lay reader.

Dynamometry can be an effective tool for determining strength deficits side to side and tracking progress through return to sport.Strength testing using manual muscle tests is grossly insufficient for determining return to sport readiness as it lacks precision and sensitivity.Fousekis 2011, Rambaud 2018 The current piece will serve as a scoping review for those instances, as well as discuss the evidence on how well we are addressing the issue in these situations. However, after an injury, there are instances where asymmetries have been shown to play a role in the risk of reinjury. Oliver 2016 It would not make sense for a sweep rower to demonstrate the same degree of rotation side to side if they have rowed starboard for their entire career.

Some sports have shown asymmetries to be common in baseball players, demonstrating differences in range of motion of both their shoulders and hip. If an individual is meeting the base physical activity guidelines as either a youth or an adult, the minutiae of small asymmetries does not warrant further attention.

Performance in specific sports requires specific adaptations, while developing overall physical literacy and athletic power is predicated on a broad range of traits.

Improve quad sweep