The validity of rasterstereography as a technological tool for the objectification of postural assessment in the clinical and educational fields: pilot study

The present study aimed to validate Formetric 4D with wheelchair users in a sitting position, comparing the results with the data obtained from a postural assessment. Nine individuals with spinal cord injury were evaluated through postural assessment. Each individual was subjected to rasterstereography in a sitting position using the Formetric 4D. Test-retest reliability was evaluated, after four hours: at first, the detection was performed on the same participant three times by three different rater. After four hours, the detection was repeated by the first operator. This study highlighted the ability of Formetric 4D to provide consistent results at different times and with different evaluators, reporting a Cronbach’s alpha of 0.74 and excellent intra- and inter-operator stability with an ICC of 0.91 to 0.96. Compared to the postural evaluation, the degree of accuracy of the measurements acquired with Formetric 4D, analyzed through Spearman’s rho, showed statistically significant positive correlations with anthropometric measurements. The present study provides information enabling the use of the Formetric 4D tool in clinical, research, and educational settings this will be a very useful tool that allows students to have a three-dimensional representation of the anatomical components involved in the sitting position, helping them to learn and gain an in-depth understanding of how to perform an objective postural assessment examination.