Background: The Functional Movement Screen™ (FMS™) was updated by adding the ankle clearing test and modifying the rotary stability movement pattern and scoring criteria. This updated FMS™ may be used to support clinical decisions for the well-being of athletes and active adults.
Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine if the updated FMS™ has acceptable interrater reliability, so that various practitioners can utilize it with their patients.
Study design: Observational Laboratory Study.
Methods: Two licensed Physical Therapists (PTs) conducted the testing for the study. No warmup was allowed for the participants. Each participant underwent one FMS™ session while being recorded on video lasting approximately 15 minutes. Participants were allowed three attempts to complete each movement pattern with the best score recorded. The participants, 45 healthy active PT students, were taken through the FMS™ by a licensed PT and videotaped. The raters were four second-year PT students that observed and scored the FMS independently after videotaping was completed. SPSS was used for the interrater reliability analysis. ICC was calculated using a 2-way mixed model looking for absolute agreement.
Results: The interrater reliability was highest for the rotary stability test (ICC 0.96) while the deep squat was the least reliable (ICC 0.78). The total scores showed excellent reliability among the four student raters with an ICC of 0.95. The updated FMS™ produced good to excellent interrater reliability.
Conclusion: The updated FMS™ has acceptable interrater reliability between minimally, but adequately trained individuals. The updated FMS™ may be reliably used to assess risk for future injury.
Level of evidence: 3.
Keywords: functional movement screen; interrater; physical therapy; reliability; wellness.