[A new optoelectronic measuring device for assessment of leg circumference in comparison with manual measurement]

For compression treatment to be effective in patients with chronic venous insufficiency, it is vital that leg circumference be measured accurately. If compression stockings are custom fit and appropriate for the medical indications, patient compliance will be high. Exact measurements of circumference and length are prerequisites for a good fit. The aim of the present study was to compare an opto-electronic device for the contact-free measurement of calf circumference with the conventional manual method using a tape measure. We investigated the differences between the results obtained with the two methods, and also their reproducibility. Circumferences were measured at defined heights on an anatomically shaped non-yielding leg model and on the leg of a healthy volunteer by 10 different experimenters both with the tape measure and with the opto-electronic device. The calf circumferences measured manually with the tape measure varied significantly more than those measured opto-electronically, both in the leg model and in the leg of the volunteer. A systematic error in the opto-electronic method appears unlikely, since the manual measurements on the leg model were both larger and smaller than those obtained with the opto-electronic device. Reproducibility was exceptionally high with the opto-electronic device (standard deviation 0.11-0.42 cm). The opto-electronic method yields rapid accurate measurements of circumference with excellent intra- and inter-operator reproducibility.