Assessment of Muscle Strength Flashcards
causes of muscle weakness
Lesion or pathology affecting the nerve which innervates the muscle
- Any lesion, injury or pathology of the muscle tissue
- Disuse
- Immobilisation
example of upper motor neuron lesion CNS
stroke
example of lower motor neuron lesion PNS
peripheral nerve lesion
effects of immobilisation on muscle
Decrease; Muscle fibre size Size and number of mitochondria total muscle weight Stores of glycogen and ATP Protein synthesis Muscle tension produced all leading to atrophy
Strength
- Ability to generate force
- Capacity to exert force
- Ability to do work against resistance
factors of strength to make movement
Combined contractile forces of the muscles causing movement
• The ability to co-ordinate the agonists, antagonists and
stabiliser muscles
• The mechanical advantages of the levers
assessment of strength
cross sectional area - CT/MRI/ Tape measure
manual muscle testing - Oxford scale how much force a muscle can make
Objective measurement - isokinetics - endurance how long can you maintain force/strain gauge, dynamometry
functional assessment - 1RM
Use of assessing cross sectional area
detect muscular atrophy
MEASURED WHHEN MUSCLE IS RELAXED
predictor of mortality in some diseases e.g. COPD
Manual Muscle Testing - MMT 0
No contraction
MMT 1
Flicker or trace of contraction
MMT 2
Full range of active movement with gravity eliminated
MMT 3
Full range of active movement against gravity
MMT 4
Full range of active movement against gravity and resistance
MMT 5
Normal
Where would you position your hands to
examine the strength of the bicep muscle?
wrist and back of elbow