ManualMuscleTestHandout.docVIP

Manual Muscle Test Handout Manual muscle testing is used to determine the extent and degree of muscular weakness resulting from disease, injury or disuse. The records obtained from these tests provide a base for planning therapeutic procedures and periodic re-testing. Muscle testing is an important tool for all members of health team, dealing with physical residuals of disability. Definition: Muscle testing is a procedure for evaluating the function and strength of individual muscles and muscle groups, based on effective performance of a movement in relation to the forces of gravity and manual resistance through available range of motion. The purposes of muscle test: * To provide information that may be of assistance to a number of health professionals in differential diagnosis, treatment planning and prognosis. It has limitations in the neurological disorders, where there is an alteration in muscle tone if reflex activity is altered or if there is a loss of cortical control due to lesions of the central nervous system. * To assess muscle strength, the therapist must have a sound knowledge of anatomy (joint motions, muscle origin, insertion and function) and surface anatomy (to know where a muscle or its tendon is best palpated). * The therapist must be a keen observer and be experienced during testing to detect minimal muscle contraction, movement and/or muscle wasting and substitutions or trick movements. * A consistent method of manually testing muscle strength is essential to assess accurately a patients present status, progress and the effectiveness of the treatment program. Terminology: Muscular strength: The maximal amount of tension or force that a muscle or muscle group can voluntarily exert in a maximal effort, when type of muscle contraction, limb velocity and joint angle are specified. Muscular Endurance: The ability of a muscle or a muscle group to perform repeated contractions against resistance or maintain an isometric contraction for a period of t