Revue des maladies respiratoires
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Patients with COPD frequently have lower strength and endurance in their lower limbs compared to healthy subjects and evaluation of their quadriceps strength is recommended in practice. The handheld dynamometer has been validated and is easy to use for this measurement but its reproducibility has never been studied for endurance evaluation and only poorly for strength. The objective of this study was to estimate the inter and intra-operator reproducibility of maximal voluntary strength and endurance measurements of the quadriceps with a handheld dynamometer in patients with COPD. ⋯ The handheld dynamometer allows an excellent inter and intra-operator reproducibility for the measurement of quadricipital maximal voluntary strength and a correct to excellent reproducibility for the measurement of quadricipital endurance. This tool may be used for the evaluation of quadriceps strength in clinical practice in COPD patients, particularly during rehabilitation.