Relevance of grasp types to assess functionality for personal autonomy

Area of Science:

• Hand function research
• Autonomy assessment
• Rehabilitation science

Background:

• Current hand function assessments do not adequately capture abilities needed for daily autonomy.
• There is a need to refine evaluation methods to better reflect real-world functional demands.

Purpose of the Study:

• To quantify the relevance of different grasp types for achieving autonomy.
• To guide hand recovery and assessment strategies by prioritizing functionally important grasps.

Main Methods:

• A cross-sectional design was employed, analyzing videos of representative tasks from the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health.
• Grasps were identified, and their relevance for autonomy was weighted by task frequency in disability and dependency scales.
• Relevance was analyzed globally, per hand (right/left), and for bimanual function, with statistical significance checks.

Main Results:

• Pad-to-pad pinch (31.9%), nonprehensile use (18.6%), lumbrical grasp (15.4%), and cylindrical grasp (12%) were the most relevant.
• Lumbrical grasp was more relevant for the left hand, while cylindrical grasp was more relevant for the right hand.
• Significant differences in grasp relevance were observed based on unimanual versus bimanual actions.

Conclusions:

• The relative importance of grasps for autonomy differs between disability and dependency scales.
• Pad-to-pad and nonprehensile grasps are key for both hands; lumbrical and cylindrical grasps show hand-specific relevance.
• Findings on grasp relevance and hand/bimanual differences should inform clinical and physical decision-making in hand rehabilitation.