VALIDATION OF A NEW MEASUREMENT DEVICE (PeriKit®) FOR PERIMETRY AND VOLUMETRY OF THE LOWER LIMB: METROLOGICAL AND INTRA-OBSERVER COMPARATIVE STUDY

Accurate quantitative assessments are crucial to understanding development of diseases and their effective treatments. Various validated perimetry and volumetry measurement methods for patients with lymphedema exist and each has its own advantages and limitations and choosing the right instrument is essential. PeriKit® (PK) is a new measurement device that requires validation. This single-blind, cross-sectional study compared three assessment methods for perimetry and volumetry of the lower limb: conventional tape measure (CTM); optoelectronic infrared volumeter (Perometer® (OS) as the gold standard); and PK. Correlation coefficients between measurements were "strong" to "very strong". The ICC of the lower limb was the highest for PK (0.995), followed by the CTM (0.986) and the OS (0.974). PK had the lowest dispersion of results for all segments. Despite its poor reliability, CTM is widely used because of its low cost and portability. The OS is simple, ergonomic, and doesn’t require calibration, but suffers from imperfections such as the absence of distal extremities (i.e. feet, hands, fingers, etc.) as well as cost. PK has succeeded in reducing many of the problems associated with measurement thanks to its standardized methodology which offers high repeatability. PK can replace OS and CTM, but OS or CTM can’t replace PeriKit® because they are more dispersed and less accurate.