Term of Award

Spring 1993

Degree Name

Master of Health Science

Document Type and Release Option

Thesis (restricted to Georgia Southern)

Committee Chair

Illegible

Committee Member 1

Bobby Kennedy

Committee Member 2

Emma T. Simon

Abstract

Precise methods of estimating premorbid strength are essential for successfully managing the rehabilitation of hand injured clients. The 10% rule, which states that the dominant hand's grip, is 10% greater than the nondominant hand's grip, is frequently used as a clinical guideline to estimate premorbid strength following a unilateral hand injury. In an attempt to examine the accuracy of the 10% rule and expand its use to other muscle groups, data was collected from thirty-one right hand dominant male volunteers. This populaticn was targeted because men sustain hand trauma more frequently than women and patterns of strength may vary depending on hand dominance. Three measurements of strength were taken in both upper extremities from muscle groups responsible for three distinct motions (grip, elbow extension, and shoulder abduction) using the Baltimore Therapeutic Equipment (BTE) Work Simulator. The BTE Work Simulator is a rehabilitation tool designed to evaluate and treat injured workers through simulating job tasks and providing graded exercises. Dominant and nondominant upper extremity strength of subjects was examined individually and collectively through calculation of a paired t-test for comparison of the mean right and mean left strength measurements of each of the three muscle groups tested. As predicted, grip strength followed the 10% rule (p=.140). The shoulder abductors elbow extensors did not follow the 10% rule (p=.001).

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