Proximal hamstring tendon avulsion surgery: evaluation of the Perth Hamstring Assessment Tool

Area of Science:

• Orthopedic surgery
• Sports medicine
• Rehabilitation

Background:

• Proximal hamstring injuries require accurate assessment tools.
• Existing methods may lack comprehensive evaluation.
• A validated tool is needed for clinical practice.

Purpose of the Study:

• To validate the Perth Hamstring Assessment Tool (PHAT) for proximal hamstring injuries.
• To establish the reliability and sensitivity of the PHAT.
• To provide a practical assessment tool for clinicians.

Main Methods:

• Prospective study of 74 proximal hamstring surgical repairs in 72 patients.
• Patients completed the PHAT, SF-12 Health Survey, and Lower Extremity Functional Scale (LEFS).
• Validation involved assessing internal consistency, reproducibility, reliability, and sensitivity to change; construct validity was examined using Pearson's correlation.

Main Results:

• The PHAT demonstrated a 100% completion rate.
• High internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = 0.80) and reproducibility (ICC = 0.84) were observed.
• The PHAT showed high sensitivity to change, moderate correlation with LEFS, and low correlation with the SF-12 Physical Component Score.

Conclusions:

• The PHAT is a validated assessment tool for proximal hamstring tendon injuries.
• The questionnaire is reliable and sensitive to clinically significant changes.
• The PHAT offers a quick, practical method for pre-operative and post-operative patient assessment.