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A weak pinch grip isn’t something that many individuals are concerned with in their day to day lives. Only when these individuals find difficulty in performing simple tasks like zippering up their jacket or holding a book, they realize something is wrong with their grip. The problem is that their grip is weaker than it used to be.
Occupational therapists are often tasked to help individuals with weak grips develop strength, particularly after an injury or illness. Before creating a treatment plan, it is important for therapists to accurately measure grip and pinch strength to establish a baseline for treatment and to help set realistic goals for the client to meet.
FEI manufactures a number of products for evaluating pinch strength. One of the widely used products are mechanical pinch gauges. These gauges allow therapists to record pinch strength tests, including key, palmer, and tip to tip pinch tests. Pinch gauges are available in 2lb, 10lb, 30lb, and 60lb max readings.
Using the mechanical pinch gauges is easy. Simply follow these instructions:
Step 1: Set up the gauge before operating
- Hold the unit in one hand at the bottom of the frame
- Turn the outside dial to set zero in line with black indicator
- Turn the top dial (the red indicator) until it is one measure in front of the black indicator
Step 2: Operate the mechanical pinch gauge
- Allow your patient to pinch down on the pinch gauge
- If the black indicator goes all the way around the dial past the max readings, use the next gauge size
Strength readings can be viewed as pounds or kilograms. The maximum reading will remain until the unit is reset. Once a baseline measurement of pinch strength is found, a treatment plan can be created so that everyday tasks for patients become simple again.
Click here or contact us today for more information about our Baseline mechanical pinch gauges.