The physiological range of the Böhler's angle in the adult Croatian population.

BACKGROUND

To examine the relationship of the Böhler's angle with age, sex, and laterality, and to analyze the interrater agreement.

METHODS

After 248 digital lateral radiographs of the foot were submitted to exclusion criteria, three raters independently measured the Böhler's angle on the remaining 130 X-rays in PACS. The variables were analyzed with correlation coefficients, and one-way ANOVA. The repeated measures of ANOVA were computed across age groups (30-39, 40-49, 50-59, and 60-69 years). The interrater agreement was calculated using intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC).

RESULTS

The mean value of the Böhler's angle was 34±5° (21-46°). It was not related to age (in general [p=0.057], and across groups [p from 0.107 to 0.122]), sex (p=0.344; p=0.342), and laterality (p=0.618; p=0.617). The interrater reliability was almost perfect (ICC=0.94).

CONCLUSIONS

The Böhler's angle was not related to age, sex, and laterality, whereas the interrater agreement was almost perfect.