Reliability and validity of center-of-pressure quantification

The purpose of this study was to determine the reliability and validity of two center-of-pressure quantification methods. One hundred five individuals (33 men and 72 women) with a mean age of 26.7 years participated in phase 1 of the study. Two measures of the center-of-pressure pattern, the lateral-medial area index and the lateral-medial force index, were calculated from plantar pressure data collected on all subjects. Between-trial reliability of the two measurements was assessed using intraclass correlation coefficients. In phase 2, frontal plane motion of the rearfoot was recorded in 30 individuals. Pearson correlation coefficients were then calculated between the two center-of-pressure indices and the magnitude of rearfoot eversion obtained from each subject during walking. Intraclass correlation coefficient values ranged from 0.374 to 0.889 for the lateral-medial area index and from 0.215 to 0.905 for the lateral-medial force index. Pearson correlation coefficients between the two center-of-pressure indices and the rearfoot kinematic variables ranged from 0.050 to 0.165. The lateral-medial area index and the lateral-medial force index may have adequate between-trial reliability but are not related to the magnitude of frontal plane rearfoot eversion during the stance phase of walking.