A reliable technique for the assessment of posture: assessment criteria for aspects of posture: Assessment criiteria for aspects of posture

Background. The purposes of this study were: a) to describe assessment criteria for 10 separate aspects of posture; b) to describe the development and use of a qualitative posture rating scale based on the above; and c) to establish the reliability of the assessment technique. Methods. Experimental design. Observation and photographic record of the posture of a sample of adolescent males. Reliability determined using two observations separated by a period of seven days. Participants: 114 adolescent males (age, 15-17 yrs) randomly selected from two post-primary schools. Measures: Ten different aspects of posture assessed according to defined criteria. Assessments made from four photographs: anterior, posterior, lateral and oblique views. Results. Through examination of the photographs a qualitative postural assessment scale was developed. This consisted of three categories for each aspect of posture, corresponding to: good posture, moderate defect, and severe defect. Definite assessment criteria for each of the 10 aspects of posture have been described. The above has resulted in an assessment procedure in which the reproducibility of the posture scores exceeded 85% for all aspects assessed. Conclusions. Definite criteria for the examination of 10 different aspects of posture have been described and clear diagrams representing good posture, moderate and severe defects have been produced. The reproducibility of the assessment procedure described makes it suitable for investigating the relationships between posture and other health variables such as musculo-skeletal disorders.