Original Research Measurement of hand grip strength: A cross-sectional study of two dynamometry devices

Alison Lupton-Smith, Kyla Fourie, Anele Mazinyo, Molebogeng Mokone, Siwelile Nxaba, Brenda Morrow

South African Journal of Physiotherapy | Vol 78, No 1 | a1768 | DOI: https://doi.org/10.4102/sajp.v78i1.1768 | © 2022 Alison Lupton-Smith, Kyla Fourie, Anele Mazinyo, Molebogeng Mokone, Siwelile Nxaba, Brenda Morrow | This work is licensed under CC Attribution 4.0
Submitted: 07 January 2022 | Published: 26 September 2022

About the author(s) Alison Lupton-Smith, Division of Physiotherapy, Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University, Cape Town, South Africa
Kyla Fourie, Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
Anele Mazinyo, Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
Molebogeng Mokone, Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
Siwelile Nxaba, Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
Brenda Morrow, Department of Paediatrics, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa

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Abstract

Background: Grip strength has been identified as an important indicator of health status and predictor of clinical outcomes. The gold standard for measuring grip strength is the JAMAR® Hydraulic Hand Dynamometer. Less expensive dynamometers are available but have not been validated within a hospital setting.

Objectives: To validate the Camry Digital Handgrip Dynamometer (Model EH101) against the validated JAMAR® Dynamometer (Model J00105) in a hospital population.

Methods: A cross-sectional observational study with a randomised single-blind cross-over component was conducted on consenting adult patients admitted to general hospital wards. The best of three measurements taken using the dominant hand was used for analysis.

Results: Fifty-one participants (median [interquartile range] age 42 [30–58] years; n = 27 [52.9%] female) were included. The mean difference between the Jamar® and Camry measurements was 1.9 kg ± 3.6 kg (t-value 0.9; p = 0.4). There was a strong positive correlation between the Jamar® and the Camry devices (R = 0.94; r² = 0.88; p < 0.0001). Excellent agreement was found between Jamar® and Camry measurements (interclass correlational coefficient 0.97, 95% CI 0.94–0.99, p < 0.0001). Hand dominance significantly affected the agreement between devices (p = 0.002).

Conclusions: The Camry Digital Handgrip Dynamometer is a valid tool for assessing grip strength in hospitalised adult patients.

Clinical implications: The Camry Digital Handgrip Dynamometer could be used as an inexpensive tool to measure grip strength.

Keywords

Grip strength; Hand grip; Hand grip strength; Dynamometry

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