Objective: Examine the influence of knee positions and gender on the Ober test for the length of the iliotibial band.
Design: A cross-sectional comparative repeated measures design.
Background: The Ober test is in widespread use, yet the influence of knee positions and gender on the test has not been reported. Such information is needed to help clarify test results.
Methods: The Ober test was administered with the knee flexed to 90 degrees and extended to 0 degrees to the right lower limb of 26 women and 23 men. The limb was lowered from abduction and the end point of hip abduction (positive angle) or hip adduction (negative angle) was measured in relation to neutral.
Results: The hip adduction movement was restricted more with the knee flexed than with the knee extended for both genders (P<0.009). With the knee flexed the mean hip abduction angle was less for men (+4 degrees) than for women (+6 degrees) (P<0.001), and with the knee extended the mean hip adduction angle was greater for men (-9 degrees) than for women (-4 degrees) (P<0.001).
Conclusions: The Ober test with the knee flexed limited hip adduction more than with the knee extended for both men and women, and women had greater limitations than men.
Relevance: The Ober test with the knee flexed and with the knee extended yielded different results and may be considered different tests. Normal Ober test values for the two knee positions should be defined separately for men and women in order to understand how deviations from normal are related to pathologies.