Concurrent Validity of The Expanded Cutting Alignment Scoring Tool (E-CAST)

BACKGROUND: The Expanded Cutting Alignment Scoring Tool (E-CAST) has been previously shown to be reliable when assessing lower extremity alignment during a 45-degree sidestep cut, however, the validity of this tool remains unknown. The purpose of this study was to assess the concurrent validity of the E-CAST by comparing visually identified movement errors from two-dimensional (2D) video with three-dimensional (3D) biomechanical variables collected using motion capture. STUDY DESIGN: Cross Sectional METHODS: Sixty female athletes (age 14.1 ± 1.5 years) who regularly participated in cutting/pivoting sports performed a sidestep cut with 2D video and 3D motion capture simultaneously recording. One clinician scored the 2D videos for each limb using the E-CAST criteria. Joint angles and moments captured in 3D were computed for the trunk and knee. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analyses were performed to determine the accuracy of each E-CAST item and to provide cut-off points for risk factor identification. RESULTS: ROC analyses identified a cut-off point for all biomechanical variables with sensitivity and specificity ranging from 70-85% and 55-89%, respectively. Across items, the area under the curve ranged from 0.67 to 0.91. CONCLUSION: The E-CAST performed with acceptable to outstanding area under the curve values for all variables except static knee valgus. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 3b