Purpose: To evaluate the intra-and inter-session test-retest agreement of a novel neck-strength assessment protocol using a hand-held dynamometer. Background: A literature review found a lack of neck-strength assessment protocols that are both portable and reliable. Hand-held dynamometry is a portable and inexpensive method of assessing muscle strength, but it is not commonly used for neck-strength assessment. Methods: A hand-held dynamometer was used to evaluate neck strength in 30 healthy participants. The device measured maximum force in cervical flexion, extension, side flexion, side flexion with rotation, and pure rotation, using the ipsilateral hand to apply isometric resistance over 3 seconds. Three measurements were taken over 6-8 days. Results: Test-retest intra-class correlation coefficients (ICCs) showed high reliability, ranging from 0.94 to 0.97 for all tested directions from Trial 1 to Trial 2 (intra-session reliability, ICC [2,1], absolute). ICC values demonstrated good to high inter-session reliability, ranging from 0.87 to 0.95 for all tested directions from Trial 1 to Trial 3 (ICC [2,1], absolute). Conclusion: The results suggest that the five test positions of the neck and upper-quadrant strength assessment protocol can be performed using hand-held dynamometry with good to high reliability.Key Words: muscle strength dynamometer; neck muscles; reproducibility of results. RÉ SUMÉObjectif : É valuer la convergence test-retest intra et intersessionnelle d'un nouveau protocole d'é valuation de la force du cou au moyen d'un dynamomè tre portatif. Contexte: Une recension des é crits a ré vé lé un manque de protocoles d'é valuation de la force du cou à la fois portables et fiables. La dynamomé trie manuelle est une mé thode portable et peu coû teuse d'é valuation de la force musculaire, mais elle n'est pas utilisé e couramment pour é valuer la force du cou. Mé thodes : On a utilisé un dynamomè tre portatif pour é valuer la force du cou chez 30 participants en bonne santé . On a mesuré la force maximale en flexion cervicale, extension, flexion laté rale, flexion laté rale avec rotation et rotation pure en utilisant la main ipsilaté rale pour appliquer une ré sistance isomé trique pendant 3 secondes. On a pris trois mesures en 6 à 8 jours. Assessing muscle strength is a fundamental part of patient care for physiotherapists. The value of a reliable tool to assess muscle strength has been emphasized, both to determine functional impairment and to develop appropriate therapeutic interventions. A review of the literature has shown a lack of neck-strength assessment protocols that evaluate side flexion and rotation along with flexion and extension and that are both portable and reliable. 1 Currently, fixed-frame dynamometry is the most widely recognized method of reliably assessing isometric neck strength. This method uses a large wallor frame-mounted machine with a fixed base, which are expensive and generally impractical for most clinical settings. 2 In contrast, hand-held dynamometers are portable...
Recently the plastic ball grid array (PBGA) has been gaining industry-wide acceptance in high pin count applications as a low-cost alternative to fine-pitch leaded packages such as the plastic quad flat pack (PQFP). The main factors leading to its use include low cost, high I/O density, a small footprint, and the potential for superior electrical and thermal performance with respect to PQFPs [Houghton 1993; Freyman and Pennisi, 1991]. However, concerns about interconnect reliability remain, particularly for systems to be joined with novel solders or conductive adhesives, which are being used increasingly both for environmental reasons and because of the need for higher temperature operating systems. Thus there exists a need to accurately evaluate design trade-offs arising due to these failures in order to increase reliability and drive design improvements. A PC-based CAD tool for the assessment of the reliability of PBGA interconnects is presented. This tool facilitates the use of physics-of-failure methodology in design for reliability, virtual qualification and the selection of accelerated test conditions. The tool assesses candidate and existing package designs for reliability in many different environments using a database of fully validated physics-of-failure models. These models calculate times-to-failure for the fundamental mechanisms which cause failure of area array packages housing both bipolar and CMOS based systems. Particular focus is placed on the use of this tool for analyzing the reliability of area array solder joint interconnects, including those made with lead-free solders and conductive adhesives, and on conductive filament formation between the traces in a plastic ball grid array. The addition of the appropriate material properties for high temperature, fatigue resistant, lead-free solders to the materials database, the development of a package designer for PBGA designs, and the incorporation of failure mechanism models for flip chip solder fatigue, PBGA solder joint shear and tensile fatigue, and PBGA conductive filament formation will be discussed. The ability to use this tool to conduct assessments of the susceptibility of PBGAs to non-interconnect failure mechanisms is an added advantage as it permits a determination of the relative importance of interconnect failure as a failure mode.
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