Journal
HEAD AND NECK-JOURNAL FOR THE SCIENCES AND SPECIALTIES OF THE HEAD AND NECK
Volume 38, Issue 1, Pages 79-84Publisher
WILEY
DOI: 10.1002/hed.23853
Keywords
lymphedema; assessment; head; neck; therapy
Categories
Ask authors/readers for more resources
Background. There is no clinical assessment available to measure head and neck lymphedema. This study proposes the use of a tape measurement system and the MoistureMeterD (MMD) to evaluate head and neck lymphedema. Methods. The reliability and validity of these assessments was examined in 20 patients with head and neck lymphedema and 20 matched healthy controls. Results. Interrater reliability for the MMD and 3 of the 4 tape measurements was excellent (intraclass correlation coefficients [ICCs] > 0.90). Intrarater reliability of the MMD was 0.97. The MMD discriminated between patients with head and neck lymphedema and healthy controls, t(19) = 8.97, p < .001, whereas the tape measurements did not. Correlation between MMD score and head and neck lymphedema level ratings was significant (rho = 0.59) indicating convergent validity. Three of the tape measurements were significantly correlated with MMD scores (rho = 0.37-0.38) but not with ratings of head and neck lymphedema. Conclusion. The tape measurement system and MMD show potential as objective measurements of head and neck lymphedema with the exception of 1 tape measurement point. (C) 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available