Jamar Dynamometer and Adapted Sphygmomanometer for Measuring Grip Strength in Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis

Abstract

Two instruments for measuring grip strength, the Jamar dynamometer and an adapted sphygmomanometer have been compared in 88 subjects with rheumatoid arthritis. Correlations have been found between instrument measurements of .83 for the right hand and .84 for the left hand. Because these correlations were found to be high and linear, regression tables for predicting grip strength from one instrument to the other have been provided. As norms for the Jamar dynamometer already exist, clinicians and researchers now have a standard for comparing patients and subjects and the normal population for grip strength.