Assessment of grip-motion characteristics in carpal tunnel syndrome patients using a novel finger grip dynamometer system

BACKGROUND: Grip strength measurement is widely used in daily medical practice, and it has been reported that the grip strength decreases in patients with carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS). However, conventional grip dynamometers evaluate only the maximum power of total grip strength and cannot measure the time course of grip motion. In this report, we aimed to determine the grip characteristics of CTS patients by measuring the time course of each finger’s grip motion and to analyze the relationship between finger grip strength and subjective symptoms using this new grip system. METHODS: The grip strength of each finger was measured using the new grip system that has four pressure sensors on the grip parts of each finger of the Smedley grip dynamometer. We analyzed the time course of grip motion and relationship between finger grip strength and subjective symptoms in 104 volunteer and 51 CTS hands. The Japanese Society for Surgery of the Hand version of the Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Instrument (CTSI-JSSH) and the Disability of Arm, Shoulder, and Hand questionnaire (DASH) were used as subjective evaluation scores. RESULTS: In the CTS group, the grip time with the index, middle, and ring fingers was longer, and the time at which strength was lost after reaching the maximum was earlier. Patients with severe subjective symptoms tended to not use the index and middle fingers during grip motion. CONCLUSIONS: This new system that measures each finger’s grip strength at one time and record the time course of grip motion could quantify a patient’s symptoms easily and objectively, which may contribute to the evaluation of hand function.