Ober’s Test | Tensor Fascia Latae / Iliotibial Band (ITB) Length

Execution:

  1. Patient is in side-lying position with the test side on top and the hip and knee of the lower leg slightly flexed for stability
  2. The examiner then passively abducts the patient’s upper leg and brings it into slight extension, while the other hand fixates the pelvis
  3. Optional: Some authors describe two versions – with the knee on the tested side in 90° of flexion and extension
  4. The examiner then slowly lowers the upper leg down to the table

 

Positive Outcome: The patient’s upper leg cannot be adducted far enough to contact the table, which indicates a shortened ITB

Study Reliability Sn Sp LR+ LR-
Willett et al. (2016) NA NA NA NA NA
Reese et al. (2003) Intra-rater ICC=0.9 NA NA NA NA
Comment: The authors have investigated the role of the ITB band in limiting adduction during this test and found that the gluteus medius+minimus and joint capsule of the hip may play a bigger role than the ITB, which would render the Ober’s test invalid for the Tensor Fascia Latae and ITB.