Background: The modified sphygmomanometer test (MST) is a simple and less expensive method to objectively assess muscle strength.  Purpose: To investigate the measurement properties of the MST for muscle strength assessment in individuals with sub-acute/chronic stroke and to determine the reference values of the MST for muscle strength assessment. Methods: Sixty-five individuals with sub-acute and 59 with chronic stroke (62±14 and 57±13 years old, respectively) were included. Healthy individuals (n=120) were also included for the establishment of the reference values. Muscle strength of 36 upper/lower limbs, and trunk muscle groups were assessed with the MST and dynamometers. To investigate whether the number of trials would affect the results, one-way ANOVA was applied. For the reliabilities and criterion-related validity, intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC), Pearson’s correlation coefficients, and coefficients of determination were calculated. Multiple regression analysis was employed to determine if a single measure can indicate overall muscle strength. Descriptive statistics were employed to stablish reference values. (α=5%). Results: Different numbers of trials provided similar values for all assessed muscles (0.003≤F≤0.18;0.83≤p≤0.99) with adequate test-retest and interrater reliabilities (0.50≤ICC≤0.99;p<0.001)  and validity (0.61≤r≤0.95;p<0.001). The MST values were good predictors of those obtained with portable dynamometers (0.54≤r2≤0.90). Multiple regression analysis showed that overall upper and lower limb muscles strength explained 43-78% of the variance of grip and knee extensors, respectively. Adequate reference values were determined for the MST. Conclusion: The MST showed adequate measurement properties for muscle strength assessment of individuals with sub-acute/chronic stroke and a single trial can be used, after familiarization.

ASSESSMENT OF MUSCLE STRENGTH WITH THE MODIFIED SPHYGMOMANOMETER TEST IN INDIVIDUALS WITH SUB-ACUTE AND CHRONIC STROKE: MEASUREMENT PROPERTIES AND REFERENCE VALUES