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Disturbed grip function in women with rheumatoid arthritis
B Dellhag1, N Hosseini, T Bremell
1Department of Rheumatology, Institute of Clinical Neuroscience, Göteborg University, Sweden.
The Journal of Rheumatology
|January 5, 2002
Summary
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients show impaired precision grip-lift performance, linked to stiffness and reduced hand function. These grip changes in RA may affect daily activities and require further study.
Area of Science:
- Rheumatology
- Biomechanics
- Hand Function Studies
Background:
- Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) frequently causes hand dysfunction and disability.
- Understanding grip performance is crucial for managing RA-related limitations.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the precision grip-lift sequence in RA patients.
- To correlate grip performance with pain, stiffness, and hand function.
- To examine the relationship between grip performance and subjective experiences of clumsiness and object dropping.
Main Methods:
- Studied precision grip-lift performance in 23 women with RA and 7 controls.
- Correlated performance with self-assessed pain, stiffness, and observer-assessed hand function.
- Utilized the Grip Ability Test (GAT) score.
Main Results:
- RA patients exhibited prolonged grip-lift phases and disturbed safety margins (SM).
- Lower SM was observed in patients with more severe RA and was linked to stiffness and GAT score.
- While SM correlated with clumsiness, it did not fully explain object dropping frequency.
Conclusions:
- Precision grip-lift performance is disturbed in RA patients.
- Further research is needed to elucidate the mechanisms behind these grip performance changes in RA.