Is a computer-based measurement method superior to a recommended manual method by the ROHO(®) Group to assess pressure in the sitting position?

Background: In clinical practice, a manual-based assessment is standard procedure to adjust the air pressure in the ROHO(®) cushion in seated position. Recently, a computerized pressure system method was developed to support the clinical adjustment of air in the ROHO(®) cushion to reduce the pressure in the seated position. To our knowledge, no studies have investigated the reliability between the manual method mostly used in clinical practice and the alternative computer-based assessment of the pressure in the seated position.

Aim: The objective was to test intra-tester and inter-tester reliability and evaluate if a computer-based measurement method is superior to a manual method to reduce pressure in the seated position. The cushion used was a Roho Quadtro select(®) high profile.

Methods: An intra-tester and inter-tester reliability study was conducted in 2010 at the Department of Occupational Therapy and Physiotherapy, Aalborg Hospital, Aarhus University Hospital, Denmark. Subjects included were two occupational therapists and 20 healthy subjects. The outcome measures were obtained using a pressure imaging system that could register pressure distribution in the sitting area.

Results: The study did not show high intra-class correlation coefficients neither in the intra-tester nor in the inter-tester reliability for manual or computer-based methods in reducing pressure in the seating position.

Conclusions: The current company-recommended air pressure adjustment procedure seems unreliable. The technical superiority of the computer-based method over the manual method has not been established.