Applicability of cutoff scores of Chinese Cumberland Ankle Instability Tool and Foot and Ankle Ability Measure as inclusion criteria for study of chronic ankle instability in Chinese individuals.

OBJECTIVE

To examine the applicability of Chinese Cumberland Ankle Instability Tool (CAIT-C) and Foot and Ankle Ability Measure (FAAM-C) as inclusion criteria recommended by the International Ankle Consortium (IAC) for study of chronic ankle instability in the Chinese individuals.

DESIGN

Cross-sectional comparative design with known groups.

SETTING

Research laboratory.

PARTICIPANTS

145 participants with chronic ankle instability (CAI) and 66 participants without injury.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: CAIT-C and FAAM-C Activities of Daily Living (FAAM-C-ADL) and FAAM-C Sports (FAAM-C-Sports).

RESULTS

The CAIT-C scores (18.2 ± 5.6), FAAM-C-ADL scores (97.0 ± 4.3) and FAAM-C-Sports scores (92.2 ± 10.3) of the CAI group were all lower than the CAIT-C scores (27.4 ± 3.1), FAAM-ADL scores (99.0 ± 2.1) and FAAM-Sports scores (98.4 ± 3.1) (P < 0.01) of the uninjured group. The recommended cutoff score of CAIT-C<24 by the IAC for identifying CAI had a sensitivity of 80.7% and a specificity of 84.9%. If the recommended cutoff scores of FAAM-ADL<90，FAAM-Sports<80 by the IAC as inclusion criteria for the study of CAI were applied, 97% of participants with CAI in this sample would be excluded.

CONCLUSION

The results support the recommended cutoff score of CAIT-C<24 by the IAC to identify Chinese individuals with CAI for study. However, the recommended cutoff scores of FAAM-ADL<90 and FAAM-Sports<80 will exclude most Chinese individuals with CAI having only mild functional impairments.